Elmore Family Watterson
Chapter 5: The Touring
A/N: I'M BACK EVERYONE! And I sincerely apologize for the long update too! College has been keeping me extremely busy for the past several months and my most recent classes were determined to kill me with homework before I got off for summer break. Now that my vacation has officially started, I have all the time to focus on my fanfic (and fan art on DeviantArt) until my new semester starts in September. Just like how I did with Chapter 4, I made this new chapter extra long to make up for lost time. I included a lot of special appearances in this chapter, so I'll let you look out for them and tell me what your most favorite moments were.
I do not own any of these characters. They respectfully belong to Ben Bocquelet and Cartoon Network, as well as Disney, Nickelodeon, Dreamworks, Illumination, Zagtoon, Blue Sky Studios, and Hasbro. This fan-made story is made solely for entertainment purposes.
Enjoy!
"Goodbye, California. Hello, ocean." Darwin narrated as he recorded the cruise taking off from its port through the buffet window.
His brother Gumball stood beside him as he captured the moment and when they noticed the people on the port waving to everyone onboard to have a safe trip, they happily waved back. Richard, Nicole, and Anais also had the chance to watch the entire scenario while sitting at a table closest to the window the boys stood at. After setting their things up back at their cabin (clothing in the drawers, toiletries in the bathroom, etc.), the Watterson's came back to the Lido buffet to get a better view of the Seven Seas' departure. With the exception of Richard, everyone was still full from the burgers they had from earlier, so they decided to lay off from any food for the time being. Instead, they focused on accessing the Seven Seas Hub app on each of their phones now that they were actually on the ship, exploring every single feature it had to offer, from the virtual maps of each deck to the daily schedule of the cruise's activities, including the islands they'll be visiting, with Stellawand Island being the first one they'll stop at in two days. Of course, the only feature that wasn't free on the app was the Messaging section, which would allow the family members to communicate with one another through text. Thankfully, it only cost them $5 each to access said feature, so the Watterson's went ahead and opened it on their phones, with all the charges going under Nicole's name. They even made sure to get each other's contacts by entering their cruise numbers from their respective cards. Once all was said and done, the family decided to tour the ship after they finished witnessing the ship take off.
"So, are you all ready for that tour?" Nicole questioned everyone in anticipation.
"Yeah!" Gumball, Darwin, and Richard answered excitedly at the same time, the former two turning away from the large window while the latter finished off his last plate of food.
"I'm ready when you all are!" Anais chimed in with a grin on her face.
"What are we waiting for then? Let's go!" The matriarch stood up with a wide smile. "We'll be exploring this deck first."
Everyone followed after the blue cat woman out of the buffet and into the heart of the Lido Deck itself, the warm sun beaming down on them from above. As the Watterson's noticed, there was now triple the amount of passengers partying onboard as music blasted through the air (the current song being "She Drives Me Crazy" by Fine Young Cannibals). Since the family of five was already familiar with the bottom area filled with swimming pools, drink bars, and the buffet, they decided to explore what was on the upper levels, taking the stairs while Darwin recorded everything with the PhoneCam equipped on his cellphone. Some passengers were even friendly enough to wave to the camera, much to the young goldfish's delight. The Watterson's made sure to explore every single fun area they could find. Some of them included coming across life-sized chess pieces (which Nicole and Anais had the chance to pose right next to since it was one of their favorite board games), getting a close-up of the water park, which mostly consisted of children of different age groups, passing by an outdoor gym area with individuals engaging in all sorts of sports activities, and best of all, they went to the highest deck to get a full view of the endless body of water sparkling under the sunlight. Never in their lives have the family of five seen so much blue everywhere! The scene was so breathtaking that Darwin had to do a panoramic pic just to capture everything. While they enjoyed standing behind the railing and feeling the soft breeze hit their faces, the Watterson's could only stay outside for so long as the heat began to exhaust them.
"Are there any ice cold drinks we can get around here?" Gumball wondered as he wiped the beads of sweat off his forehead.
"Yeah!" Richard agreed as he rapidly fanned himself with his right hand. "I could definitely go for a mega cup of slushy right now."
Nicole and Darwin nodded at the giant pink rabbit's suggestion.
"Same here."
"Yep."
"Maybe I can find something," Anais suggested as she pulled out her cellphone. Accessing the Seven Seas Hub app, she tapped the Food & Beverages section and scrolled through the page until her eyes landed on a certain location.
"Oh, here's one!"
The four older Watterson members turned towards the youngest in anticipation, the 4-year-old holding up her device to show everyone what she discovered.
"There's this place called the Sweet Cabana Café which sells all sorts of drinks like hot and iced coffee, smoothies, and milkshakes, along with freshly baked goods. It's on the fifth deck, so maybe we can try that."
Nicole switched her attention to the three males after Anais finished her explanation. "Well, what do you boys think? Want to check out that café?"
"Sure!" Richard and Darwin smiled at the suggestion.
"Anything to get out of this heat," Gumball added, getting more parched the longer they stayed outside.
"Deck 5 it is!" The matriarch made the final decision. "Thanks for your help, Anais."
The small pink rabbit smiled at the fact that she got a chance to assist the family. Once they went through the sliding doors, exiting the Lido Deck, they were all hit with a blast of cool air, much to their relief. They chose to take the elevator since it would be the fastest way to the lower level, so after going past three decks, the Watterson's landed on the fifth one and left right out once the doors opened up. The smell of coffee and baked goods filled the elevator hallway, which meant they were getting closer to their destination. As the family stepped through the entrance way of Deck 5, sitting on their right was the Sweet Cabana Café itself, with its variety of cold and hot drink machines ranging from fruit smoothies to roasted coffee, and a front glass display containing an assortment of freshly baked goods like donuts, croissants, muffins, brownies, and much more! Just the sight of it all made the Watterson's mouths water, especially Richard, who thought about buying every single item he laid his eyes on. Of course, knowing how his wife was on spending too much money, he did his best to exercise as much self control as possible. While everyone was in the middle of choosing what they wanted from the menu they picked up from the front counter, a young woman named Cass Hamada came out from the double doors with a stack of plastic cups and sat them next to the cool drink machines. When she saw new customers standing at the cash register, she picked up the pace to finish her small task and went over to the family of five, greeting them with a warm smile on her face.
"Hello! Welcome to the Sweet Cabana Café! How may I help you?"
Hearing the café worker's voice, the Watterson's took their eyes off the menu and smiled back at her, each of them already knowing what they wanted to order. Nicole was the first to speak up.
"Hello! I'll take a medium frozen mocha."
She turned to her husband and kids, signaling that it was their turn.
"A large ice cold lemonade!" Richard beamed.
Gumball, Darwin, and Anais pitched in afterwards.
"A small chocolate milkshake."
"Small vanilla milkshake!"
"A small strawberry banana smoothie for me."
Memorizing all the orders, Cass immediately got to work. "Coming right up!"
As the five individuals waited patiently for their drinks, observing the lovely atmosphere of the shops and food bars (with Darwin recording everything as usual), sudden roars of excitement and flashing cameras erupted throughout the right side of the hallway.
"It's them! It's actually them!" A passerby named Donkey exclaimed.
All the Watterson's gasped in shock when they saw who was the main source of everyone's attention…
It was Captain Mickey Mouse in the flesh! Waving to everyone as he was heading their way! And all of his friends strode alongside him; Co-Captain Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, Pete, and his pet dog Pluto!
The entire group wore the standard uniform of every other Seven Seas staff worker; all-white uniforms consisting of buttoned up long-sleeved shirts, two blue stripes at the ends of both the shirt's sleeves and long pants, and black dress shoes. The only difference was that they wore navy blue vests concealed with two gold buttons with the "7S" cruise logo printed on the upper left side. Mickey Mouse proudly wore a white captain's hat with a gold band and navy blue visor, Goofy and Donald wore plain white sailor hats, and Minnie and Daisy wore large dark blue hair bows, the former wearing it on her right ear and the latter wearing it on the back as it held up her ponytail. As for Pluto, he wore a navy blue collar with a gold tag which had his name engraved on it.
The whole family didn't realize how long they had been staring in awe until Cass waved her hand in front of them.
"Um, excuse me?" She called out politely. "All your drinks are ready."
Nicole glanced between the café worker and the Main Staff before realizing she had to pay for the orders.
"So sorry! Here's my card!" The blue cat woman exclaimed apologetically as she pulled out said card. She brought the rest of her family back to earth so they could get their drinks too.
"Get your stuff, everyone! It's all on the counter."
Her husband and kids did as they were told and immediately took sips from their individual beverages before turning their attention back to the famous crew.
"Is it just me, or are they coming towards the same place we're standing at now?!" Gumball cried out in a shocked tone.
And just as the young cat boy expected, Captain Mickey Mouse and his friends made a stop at the Sweet Cabana Café, standing right next to the Watterson's, all the members stunned speechless and trying to hold in their elation, especially the kids.
"Hello there, Ms. Hamada!" The chipper Mouse greeted the café worker. "I take it things are going well?"
"Why yes, Captain Mickey, sir!" Cass grinned at her boss. "Business is going smoothly as usual."
The Main Staff noticed the family of five and warmly smiled at them.
"And hello to you too!" Mickey waved to them. "Enjoying your stay on the ship so far?"
It wasn't everyday that the Watterson's met a celebrity in person, let alone a whole group of them. All they had to do was play it cool and greet them back. No big deal.
"HELLO! MY NAME IS GUMBALL!"
"I'M DARWIN!"
"AND I'M ANAIS!"
Well, so much for playing it cool.
"MY LITTLE BROTHER AND I SAW YOUR SWEEPSTAKES COMMERCIAL FOR THE CRUISE AND IT LOOKED SOOO AMAZING!"
"SO WE SIGNED UP AND WON THE TRIP FOR OUR WHOLE FAMILY!"
"IT'S AN HONOR TO MEET YOU ALL! WE ARE SUCH HUGE FANS!"
"CAN WE TAKE A PICTURE WITH YOU?!" Richard joined in, holding his phone out.
"Settle down! All of you!" Nicole begged her family, holding them back from crowding around the Main Staff. She turned back to the cruise captain with a nervous smile on her face.
"Sorry about that! We're not used to meeting famous people everywhere we go. I'm Nicole by the way, and this is my husband Richard and our three children. We're the Watterson family."
Mickey gave them a reassuring look.
"Nice to meet you, Watterson family! And it's alright, we're used to reactions like this."
His wife Minnie stepped forward, joining in on the conversation.
"Is this your first time on the cruise?"
"It sure is!" Nicole answered before laying each hand on her sons' heads in an endearing manner. "These two little rascals are the reasons why we earned the winning tickets on time for the trip."
"Well, we can promise you that the Seven Seas will be one of the best experiences of your lives! A-hyuck!" Goofy beamed with confidence.
"Woof!"
Pluto, who was next to Mickey the whole time, strolled over to the three Watterson kids, sniffing them all before licking each of them on the cheek affectionately. Gumball, Darwin, and Anais erupted into fits of giggles from this action while the adults laughed along with them.
"Aww! Looks like Pluto took a liking to you all," Captain Mickey smiled warmly at the children.
Nicole and Richard were especially touched by this moment, with the latter recording the whole thing on his phone so he can cherish it for later.
"Anyways," the cat mother spoke up. "We were just about to tour this entire deck since we heard most of the shops are around here."
"Oh!" Daisy Duck chimed in eagerly. "I suggest you check out Style Shores too. That shop offers some of the best vacation clothing you can find!"
She walked closer to the family so no one else in the hallway could hear.
"And let the store owner know I recommended her to you guys. She's quite the fashion expert."
The Watterson's looked down at their attire, realizing that they wore the exact same clothes every single day back in Elmore. Maybe a change in style would help give them a feel for the trip more.
"Now that you mention it,..." Nicole thought out loud. "...we could use some new clothes. So we'll definitely take you up on that offer!" She smiled at the female duck, thanking her.
Donald Duck stepped right next to his girlfriend. "If you want to find any souvenirs, you can all visit the Treasure Trove gift shop. They even sell the most scrumptious rum cakes in multiple flavors. The coconut ones are my absolute favorite!"
As Donald rubbed his belly at the thought of those baked goods, Richard's face lit up at the suggestion. "Now you're talking!"
Pete eventually joined in on the conversation as well.
"And I know the kids will definitely enjoy visiting the Candy Cavern, our local candy store," the big cat stated as he grinned at the three Watterson children. "They have everyone's classic favorites there. Chocolates, gummies, hard candies, you name it!"
While he counted off each confectionary on his fingers, Gumball, Darwin, and Anais were practically drooling on the inside, their eyes sparkling at the treats that were mentioned. Even their father was in pure bliss as he heard all this, with their mother watching them all in amusement.
"In fact, if you pass right by the Candy Cavern," Pete continued. "...there's a hallway that leads straight to the Kids Kove and Tropical T, along with the Aquatic Arcade that's at the very end. I assume that you three already signed up for the clubs, right?"
"Right!" Gumball and Darwin answered. Anais kept herself silent, but smiled and nodded nonetheless.
Nicole smiled at this new piece of information the Main Staff member gave to them. "That's great! This means that once we're done shopping for our clothes, souvenirs, and treats, you three can head straight to the kids clubs and see what they're like."
"Alright!" The two eldest children cheered. The youngest was still on edge about going to the Kids Kove all by herself, but she kept smiling so as to not worry anyone.
Suddenly, a loud caw was heard from the elevator hallway and the source of the sound flew right into the Deck 5 hall, revealing itself to be a sulfur-crested cockatoo. When it caught sight of the Main Staff in front of the Sweet Cabana Café, it swooped towards them and landed on Pete's shoulder.
"Oh, Nigel!" Pete greeted the bird. "What a surprise!"
The big cat turned back to the Watterson family, who were all taken aback by the cockatoo's entry, so he stepped forward towards them. "Watterson's, meet another member of our Main Staff, Nigel."
As the family of five got a closer look, they noticed that the cockatoo was wearing an open navy blue vest with a rectangular golden tag on the left with his name engraved on it. The bird cheerfully smiled at the relatives as he gave them a friendly caw. In return, they smiled back at him.
"Pete found the poor fellow injured in the middle of a rainforest in South America when he was on his personal trip," Captain Mickey revealed. "So he patched him up and brought him back here to nurse him back to health."
Co-Captain Minnie giggled as she fondly remembered Nigel's first weeks with them. "The little dearie grew so attached to Pete that he didn't want to leave once he got better."
Goofy smiled at the bird as well. "He proved himself to be such a big help that we made him an official member of our group."
"Nigel and Pluto make such a great team when they go around doing check ups to make sure everything runs smoothly!" Daisy added as Donald nodded in agreement.
"You said it!"
"Oh! That reminds me…" Captain Mickey suddenly remembered. "We still have to keep going to see how everyone on the ship is doing!"
He turned his head to the Watterson family, smiling brightly. "Of course, we haven't forgotten about taking a picture with you all."
"Yes please!" Richard and the kids exclaimed, with the former holding out his cell phone.
"I want one on my phone too!" Darwin added as he held out his own device.
Cass Hamada, who was watching the whole thing, raised her hand. "I can take the pictures for you if you want!"
"Thank you so much!" Nicole thanked the Sweet Cabana Café worker.
Richard and Darwin handed their phones over to the young woman and gathered around the Main Staff members along with the rest of their family, getting into position for the snap shots.
"Say cheese!" Cass said to the group.
"Cheese!" Everyone repeated, smiling as widely as possible.
Once the photos were taken on the two cell phones, Cass handed them back to Nicole, who returned them to both her husband and middle child.
"It was a pleasure to meet you all!" Nicole beamed at the Main Staff.
"Same here!" Captain Mickey responded. "We might as well get going then. I hope you all will be able to attend the Captain's Dinner tonight too."
"We definitely won't forget about that."
As everyone bid their farewells to each other, Mickey and his friends continued down the Deck 5 hallway, cheers and camera shots from all the other passengers following them until they were out of sight.
Gumball examined the group photo on Darwin's phone as the younger boy showed it to him, an eager look on his face. "Aw man! Our classmates are going to be so jealous when we show this on our presentation back home!"
"You bet!" Darwin agreed.
"Make sure you never delete those because those are memories we can't get back," Nicole informed her sons and husband.
"Right!" The boys responded.
"So, are we going to get our new clothes now?" Anais asked the mother.
"We sure are," the blue cat woman answered before turning to Cass. "Thank you again for taking the pictures for us. And for the drinks too!"
"Anytime! Hope to see you all again soon!"
"Same here!"
Nicole and her family waved to the café worker as they continued their journey through Deck 5, sipping their beverages along the way.
As always, Darwin turned on his cell phone to record everything while drinking his vanilla milkshake at the same time. The shopping area had the exact same look as the Atrium below; beige walls, beige ceiling with mini flush mount lights, coral marble floor, and silver pillars with the number '5' engraved on them, spaced apart against the glass barrier on the edge. Like every other spot on the ship, the shopping area was full of busy passengers who were entering and exiting the stores with bags in their hands. It only took the Watterson's a couple of minutes to find the Style Shoes Clothing store.
"Here we are!" Nicole announced, her family following her inside after throwing away their empty cups in a nearby trash can.
Style Shores had a large assortment of clothes that fell under the tropical category, from Hawaiian shirts to summer dresses, along with sunglasses, towels, sandals, and sun hats. While some of the items sat on racks in the middle of the ocean blue carpet floor, others hung on the white wooden walls. It was a lot to choose from, honestly.
"Hello!" A voice near the cash register caught the Watterson family's attention. "Welcome to the Style Shores clothing store! How may I help you?"
The source of the voice was a white unicorn with a curly purple mane and tail (one side of her mane longer than the other), almond-shaped sapphire blue eyes with light blue eyeshadow and voluminous eyelashes, and a cutie mark consisting of three light blue diamonds. She even wore a bright blue open vest with ocean wave illustrations on the bottom, the name of the store embedded on the upper left side. She had a warm smile on her face as she approached the newcomers.
"Hello," Nicole greeted back. "I assume you're the manager of the store?"
The unicorn nodded her head. "That's right! The name is Rarity, darling."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Rarity! Daisy recommended you to us since she said you're a fashion expert."
Rarity's eyes dazzled when she heard this. "She has?! I'm going to have to thank her later when I help her and the rest of the Main Staff with their Captain's Dinner outfits!"
The store owner composed herself once she finished her little happy speech. "Is this your first time on a cruise ship?"
"Sure is! My family and I came here to find some vacation clothes to wear," the Watterson matriarch stated as she gestured to herself and her loved ones, who nodded in agreement.
"Then you all came to the right place!" The unicorn reassured them. "As a matter of fact…"
A blue light emitted from the fashionista's horn as a bell from the cash register counter levitated right next to her, surrounded by the same blue light.
"Oh giiiirls!" Rarity called out as she rang the bell with her telekinesis.
In an instant, every other worker within the store came up and stood right in front of Rarity and the Watterson's.
The first worker was a Caucasian 16-year-old girl with long blonde hair and bangs in the front, white sunglasses with black lens sitting atop her head, a seafoam green sleeveless dress with white frills, big red hoop earrings, and white sandals with seafoam green bows; her name was Leni Loud.
The second worker was a Chinese-French 15-year-old girl with medium black hair in pigtails, bright blue eyes, and light freckles across her face, wearing a dark gray blazer with rolled-up sleeves (with pink polka dots decorating both the white collar and rolled-up sleeves), a white shirt with pink flowers and black leaves on the upper right under the blazer, pink jeans rolled up at the bottom, and pink ballet flats. She even wore small black earrings and had a little pink purse with white polka dots, a pink flower with black leaves, and a black 'M' inside a black circle; her name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
The third and fourth workers stood on top of Marinette's head due to their tiny stature. They were twin Pop Trolls that were conjoined by their hair, which was in the layered colors of turquoise, purple, and pink. The one on the right had pink skin, blue eyes, nose, and lips, and she wore a sparkly pastel purple and green layered leotard with pastel purple leg warmers. The one on the left had blue skin, purple eyes, nose, and lips, and she wore a sparkly pastel purple and green layered dress. Both twins also wore purple eyeshadow and had sparkly freckles with pink blush; their names were Satin and Chenille.
In a uniformed fashion, all the workers wore the same thing as Rarity over their outfits; bright blue open vests with ocean wave illustrations on the bottom and the Style Shores name embedded on the upper left.
"Yes, Miss Rarity?" Marinette asked the store manager.
"We have a new task at hand," the white unicorn announced in an authoritative tone. She pointed to the Watterson's as she continued to speak.
"This family here is looking for some clothes to wear since this is their first cruise vacation, so we need to find the best quality clothing for each and every one of them!"
"Yes ma'am!" All the employees saluted her.
"Leni, you're with me. We'll be helping this lovely couple."
Richard and Nicole blushed at Rarity's compliment.
"Marinette, Satin, and Chenille, you take care of the three kids. Now, onward!"
The Style Shores manager beckoned the Watterson parents to follow her and Leni to the Adults section on one side while the Watterson children followed Marinette, Satin, and Chenille to the Kids section on the other.
(With Richard and Nicole)
Rarity was in the Men's subsection with Richard, holding up every outfit in front of him via her powers and switching between them while the giant pink rabbit watched the clothes float in front of him in intrigue. The unicorn hummed in thought as she went through the whole process.
"Hmm…nope. Nuh-uh. Goodness no. Oh!"
One outfit immediately caught her attention.
"This one looks perfect for you, darling!" The fashionista exclaimed as she laid said outfit in Richard's arms.
In the Women's subsection, Leni was doing the exact same thing as her boss, holding up every outfit in front of Nicole and scrutinizing how they look.
"Too busy…too plain…too flashy…Oh! Now this will look totes fab on you!" The 16-year-old smiled as she handed the blue cat woman the perfect outfit.
(With Gumball, Darwin, and Anais)
Satin and Chenille were still standing on top of Marinette's head as they were looking at all the articles of clothing hanging in the Kids section while the three Watterson kids stood by them.
"We need to find something that's fun!" Satin declared.
"And complimentary too!" Chenille added.
"Here's the deal," Marinette negotiated with the twin Trolls. "I'll find something for the boys while you two find something for the girl. I'll come over to grab what you find."
"Sure!"
"Fine by me!"
With determination written on their faces, Satin and Chenille jumped over to the Girls subsection on one side while Marinette went straight to the Boys subsection. Gumball, Darwin, and Anais looked back and forth between the two areas, anticipating their new outfits.
"So, you think we'll like our new clothes?" The eldest child asked his younger siblings.
"Well, they are fashion experts," the youngest responded. "We'll have to wait and see."
"I just want to be surprised," the middle one smiled.
While nobody was looking, Marinette opened her small pink purse, in which a small red head with wide blue eyes, large black dots on her forehead and both sides of her cheeks, and two antennas peeked out a bit.
"Okay, Tikki," the Chinese-French girl whispered. "Which shirt do you think will look good on the eldest?"
Taking a quick look at Gumball, the Kwami looked back at the two shirts the teenager was holding up in front of herself.
"Hmm…the one on the right," Tikki pointed out in a hushed tone. "Some neutral colored shorts would fit perfectly with it too."
"Thanks," Marinette whispered back, nodding in approval as she put away the second option and gathered together the top and bottoms that were chosen.
"Now, the middle child shouldn't be too hard," the 15-year-old stated as she strolled over to the shoes and accessories area.
As with Satin and Chenille, they stood on top of a rack filled with summer dresses for little girls, using their combined hair to move from one dress to another.
"Nuh uh," Satin frowned at one dress.
"Nope," Chenille rejected another.
"Ooh!" They stopped at one that made their eyes sparkle.
"This one!"
"Definitely!"
The twins looked up at their teenage coworker who had gathered up a pair of shoes and sunglasses in the accessories area.
"Marinette! We found one!" They called out to her.
"Great!" She called back. "I'll be right there!"
Heading over to the Girls subsection, Marinette grabbed the exact dress the twins had chosen and they jumped on top of her head as they all headed back to where the Watterson kids stood.
"Here you are," Marinette smiled at the three children as she handed them their respective hand-picked outfits.
"Thank you very much!" The siblings smiled back at the helpful workers.
"Anytime!" Satin responded.
"It's what we do!" Chenille added.
"Is everybody ready?" Rarity called out through the whole store.
"Yes ma'am!" All the employees answered back.
"Alright, to the dressing rooms in the back!"
The employees and customers did as they were told and made it to the back of the store. Thankfully, there were five dressing rooms for each of the Watterson's so they could put on their new outfits at the same time.
"Everyone ready?" Nicole asked her husband and kids.
"Yep!" They answered in unison.
"Let's go then."
Each family member entered their respective stall, ready to try on the clothes that were chosen for them.
"We'll be right here if you need anything," Rarity told the family as she and the other Style Shores workers stood outside to wait.
(5 minutes later…)
"Ready?" The unicorn fashionista questioned the Watterson's.
"Ready!"
"Okay, let's see how you all look!"
At the same time, the whole family came out from their stalls with brand new attire.
Richard had on an ivory Hawaiian shirt with two palm trees with coconuts on the front and light brown khaki pants with a silver buckle.
Nicole wore a baby blue halter top and navy blue wrap pants with two ocean swirls on each side.
Gumball was wearing a yellow Hawaiian shirt with a green surfboard that had a shark bite and the words "Wipe Out!" on the front, green sunglasses, and brown khaki shorts.
Darwin had on black sunglasses with tinted lens and sunshine stickers on both sides, and black and gold sandals with the same sunshine image on the straps.
Anais wore an orange summer dress with a red hibiscus print on the lower right.
The Style Shores employees smiled at the Watterson's.
"You all look amazing!" Marinette complimented them all.
Satin, Chenille, and Leni nodded in agreement.
"Stylin'!"
"Fantastic!"
"Totes fab!"
Rarity, however, was closely inspecting some of the members. Leni noticed this too.
"Something wrong, Miss Rarity?"
"I feel like something is missing here…hold on a minute."
With a glow from her horn, the unicorn levitated two accessories from the other side of the store and brought them over to the Watterson mother and daughter. Nicole now had on a beige sun hat with a bright cerulean band while Anais had a red hibiscus on her right ear.
"Perfect!" The store manager beamed. "Now you all look dazzling!"
Leni raised an eyebrow in confusion. "But I don't see any lights on them."
"It's an expression, darling. It means they look great."
"Oh!" The 16-year-old understood.
The rest of the employees smiled even brighter at their boss' finishing touch.
"You all are free to look at yourselves in the mirror," Rarity directed the Watterson's as she noticed their eagerness to look at themselves in full view.
So, the five family members took turns in front of the large mirror in the store, from the father to the youngest child. Richard, Nicole, and Anais were incredibly pleased when they saw their new outfits while Gumball and Darwin thought they looked sharp, doing cool poses in front of their reflections.
"I assume you all are satisfied with your new vacation clothes?"
Each of the Watterson's responded positively.
"Yes!"
"Absolutely!"
"I love it!"
"Me too!"
"Same here!"
Rarity and her employees were proud of themselves at their latest accomplishment.
"Splendid! You can gather up your other clothes from the dressing room and I'll ring you all up right away."
The store manager was kind enough to give the family two big shopping bags to place their regular clothes in (one for the boys and one for the girls) since they wanted to stay in their new attire. Once they gathered up their things, they all headed straight to the cash register, with Nicole paying for everybody. Rarity gave them a First Timer discount (25% off each of their $15 outfits) out of generosity since it was their first ever cruise vacation, much to the mother's delight. While Nicole was paying, the kids noticed that Leni bore a strong resemblance to Lincoln Loud, who mentioned to them earlier that some of his older sisters were working around the ship. When they all questioned if she was related to the 11-year-old boy, she stated that she was and the blonde teenager was delighted that her little brother already made some new friends along the way. She even hoped they would see him again at one of the kids' clubs later on. Once everything was settled, the Watterson's thanked the workers of Style Shores for their help and bid them farewell, exiting the clothing store.
"Once again, I absolutely love this new outfit!" Gumball cheerfully stated as he looked down at his vacation clothes while adjusting his sunglasses on top of his head.
"I know, right?" Darwin agreed. "They fit us perfectly!"
Anais looked at her own attire from top to bottom. "I gotta admit, those workers knew exactly what they were doing."
Nicole and Richard were glad that their kids were enjoying their cruise experience more.
"Well, since we got our new clothes now, want to check out the gift shop before heading to the candy store?"
"Will we get those rum cakes too?" The giant pink rabbit questioned his wife.
"Yes Richard, we'll get the cakes too."
The husband fist pumped at this. "ALRIGHT!"
So, the Watterson family headed to their next destination, the Treasure Trove gift shop, which was two doors down from Style Shores.
"Hello!" A worker greeted the family. He was a Hispanic heavy-set man with a light brown cap, buck teeth, and an outfit consisting of a golden yellow short-sleeved shirt with the store's name on the upper left, beige shorts, and white socks with dark brown shoes; his name was Soos Ramirez.
"Welcome to the Treasure Trove gift shop. Feel free to look around and buy whatever you want."
"Thank you," Nicole smiled at him.
Taking a look around, the family noticed that the place doubled as a convenience store with snacks, medical items, electronics, inflatable life rafts, and much more aside from the trinkets it contained. Their time spent there went by much more quickly compared to when they were at the clothing store. The three kids found some items they like (Gumball and Darwin got some cool magnets while Anais got a miniature model of the entire cruise ship), Nicole got a simple coffee mug with a picture of the cruise on it, and as expected, Richard got a coconut-flavored rum cake in a little package (since the whole family wanted to try the mini cakes, the matriarch went ahead and got five of them in the same flavor). The Watterson's bought their own things with their own cards as a cashier named Melody (Soos' girlfriend) rang each of them up.
As they exited the place with new shopping bags in hand, the five individuals now headed to the one shop the kids (and their father) had been dying to go to. The Candy Cavern!
With one step inside the confectionary area, the whole family was hit with a sweet smell from every sweet treat available. As Pete has told them from earlier, there were chocolates, gummies, hard candies, and much more in plastic bins with scoops on the side lined up against the wall. This place was like a paradise for every sweet tooth on the ship!
Nicole noticed her entire family grinning from ear to ear at everything they saw, so she had to instruct them before they went too crazy.
"Okay, everyone. You can get whatever you want, but not too much. Especially you, Richard. I know how you can get."
The father and kids calmed themselves down a bit after listening to the mother's words.
"Yes ma'am," They all responded.
Suddenly, a pink blur jumped up from behind the pink marble counter and stood behind the cash register. She let out a large gasp when she saw the Watterson's and smiled brightly when she recognized them.
"Hello again!"
The family turned their heads towards the source of the voice and their eyes grew wide at the familiar face. It was none other than Pinkie Pie, the pony who greeted them when they first arrived on the ship! Only this time, she was wearing a red open vest with the name of the store embedded on the upper left.
"Miss Pie!" They exclaimed gleefully.
"You work at the candy store too?" Gumball questioned her.
"Yep! This is my main job, but I have other positions around the ship to make sure everyone enjoys themselves! All the candy here is super duper delicious, so you all can look around and get whatever you'd like!"
"Thank you!" Richard and the kids beamed at the store worker.
In less than a second, Gumball, Darwin, and Anais dashed straight over to the candy bins. Their father was about to do the same, but he was held back by his wife.
"Hold on there, honey. I'm going to have to be with you for this," Nicole told her eager husband.
Richard gave her a sheepish grin. "Okay."
While all the Watterson's were occupied, more customers showed up within the store, who Pinkie greeted with a hoof wave.
"Hello! Welcome to the Candy Cavern!"
With the three siblings, they each grabbed a candy bag that was hanging next to one of the bins and grabbed every sort of candy they liked individually. Gumball got a mixture of both chocolates and gummies, Darwin got an interesting pack of gummies shaped like food (such as a burger and pizza), and Anais got whatever she could find like any other 4-year-old would. One candy bin eventually caught the eldest child's interest, which was filled with gummy whales. He wondered what they tasted like, considering he never had them before. Problem was, they were sitting all the way at the top and because of his short stature, Gumball couldn't find a way to reach it. After two failed attempts of standing on the tip of his toes to reach the candy shovel next to the bin, he wondered if he should just ask for help or move on to another candy bin closer to his level.
"Hey dude, need some help there?" A voice broke the blue cat out of his thoughts.
When he turned around to see who it came from, it was revealed to be a tall 13-year-old Thai-American human girl with light brown skin and messy auburn hair, and she wore a white T-shirt with pink sleeves and an orange flame symbol on the front, blue shorts, a yellow jacket tied around her waist, white socks, and purple and white gym shoes.
"Uh, yeah. Thanks," Gumball responded, flattered by the girl's generosity. "It's the one with the gummy whales."
"Okay."
The girl grabbed the scoop next to the specific candy bin and shoveled out a limited number of gummies as the 12-year-old cat held his bag open for her to dump them inside. While that was going on, another figure came over to where they stood.
"Oh, hey there."
Gumball turned his head and, to his surprise, it was a 13-year-old orange feline with a turquoise blue mohawk surrounded by a brown marking that lead halfway down his forehead in an arrow shape, and he wore a yellow tank top with black outlines and a tribal shark graphic on the front, black cargo pants, and black sandals. He was looking straight at the 12-year-old in front of him.
"Are you a Ventrexian?"
Gumball tilted his head in confusion. "A what now?"
Realizing his mistake, the orange feeling has an embarrassed look on his face. "Never mind! I just noticed that you had some of the same features as me and thought you were from the same planet I came from."
Gumball smiled in a forgiving manner. "Nope. I'm just a regular Earth cat."
The girl who helped the Watterson boy watched the exchange in amusement. "Ironic, isn't it, Cato?"
"Cato?" The blue cat questioned. "Is that your name?"
"Well, Little Cato to be exact," the Ventrexian answered. "But, you can just call me Cato."
"And I'm Anne. Anne Boonchuy," the Thai-American girl introduced herself.
"I'm Gumball Watterson. Thanks for your help, Anne."
"No problem!"
The younger Watterson siblings walked over to where their older brother was at, seeing him converse with two other kids.
"Hey Gumball," Darwin got his attention. "Did you get everything you wanted?"
"Sure did! By the way, this is Anne and Cato, who I just met."
The 12-year-old turned back to the two older kids. "Anne and Cato, this is my brother and sister, Darwin and Anais."
"Hey there!" Anne smiled at them.
"'Sup?" Little Cato greeted.
The younger Watterson children returned the gesture.
"Hello!"
"Nice to meet you."
"Hey, Anne! Cato!" A hyperactive voice called out, which came from one of the two individuals approaching the same spot the group of kids were gathered at.
One was a 13-year-old Mexican boy with tan skin, chocolate black curly hair, brown eyes with a scar across his left one, and freckles dusted on both his cheeks, and he wore an orange and yellow striped shirt, a black jacket tied around his waist, blue jeans, and brown shoes.
The other beside him (who the voice came from) was a 13-year-old half-Latina, half-Caucasian girl with medium pastel blue hair, beige skin and blue eyes, and she wore a sleeveless white shirt under a red overall dress with matching goggles on top of her head, and gray boots with black belts and silver buckles with black soles.
"Did you get the candy you wanted? Manny and I already did!" The blue-haired girl stated as she proudly held up her candy bag filled with sour candy and Poppin' Rocks.
"We were just about to, Frida," Anne told the girl.
The boy who was called Manny noticed the three Watterson siblings near Anne and Little Cato. He even saw that they were wearing the white Seven Seas bands on each of their right wrists, signifying that they were around the 12 and under age range.
"Hey there!" He greeted them. "Are you three in any of the kids clubs?"
Gumball and Darwin lit up at this.
"Actually," the eldest spoke up first. "My brother and I were just about to head to the Tropical T after we got our candy here."
He gestured to Anais next. "As for our sister, she's going to the Kids Kove."
This was not something the small pink rabbit wanted to hear right now, but as always, she kept up a straight face in front of everybody.
Manny smiled at this piece of information. "That's great! We just came from there and were on our way back. I'm Manny Rivera by the way. And this here…," he gestured to the blue-haired girl beside him. "…is my best friend, Frida Suarez."
"What up, dudes?" Frida saluted them.
The Watterson kids introduced themselves once more.
"I'm Gumball Watterson."
"Darwin Watterson."
"Anais Watterson."
"We see you've already met Anne and Cato too," Manny pointed out.
The aforementioned teens nodded their heads.
"I was just helping Gumball out with one of the bins he couldn't reach," the Thai-American explained.
"You guys are going to love the clubs!" Little Cato smiled widely.
From the excited tone of the Ventrexian, it gave Gumball and Darwin all the more anticipation to go to the Tropical T.
"There's food and music!" Frida added.
"And the arcade is just around the corner!" Manny filled in as well.
"If you want…," Anne spoke up. "…we can take you three to the clubs."
The Watterson boys gasped in delight. "Yes please!"
"But first, Anne and I have to grab our own candy," Little Cato admitted.
The tall girl suddenly remembered that she and the orange feline were the only ones without candy bags.
"Oh yeah! Thanks for that, dude. Wait right here, you guys."
Anne and Little Cato headed off to get their own treats while the other kids stood by to wait for them. Meanwhile, Richard and Nicole glanced at their children conversing with the young teens as the blue cat woman kept track of how much candy her husband was grabbing for his own treat bag on the other side of the store.
"Looks like our kids made some more friends," Nicole smiled warmly.
Richard was just as proud as his wife. "I'm so happy for them."
"You know…" the Watterson mother pondered. "It's been a while since we had time to ourselves. Want to take a walk around the ship before we all get prepared for the Captain's Dinner tonight? Of course, we would have to put our clothing bags away back in our cabin first."
The giant pink rabbit nodded eagerly. "Just like old times."
Once all the kids got their bags, Gumball, Darwin, and Anais walked over to Nicole and Richard, the others following behind them.
"Hey, Mom! Dad!" The eldest got their attention. "The older kids are going to show us to the kids clubs. Is it okay if we go with them?"
The Thai-American girl stepped up to the parents, a reassuring grin on her face. "Don't worry, we'll make sure to take good care of them, Mr. and Mrs. Watterson."
Nicole was touched by the kind gesture. "Thank you so much, sweetie! And what are your names?"
"I'm Anne Boonchuy."
"Little Cato."
"Manny Rivera."
"Frida Suarez."
"Well, it's nice to meet you all!" Richard greeted them in a chipper manner.
"Before we go though, let's pay for our treats first," Nicole informed everyone.
So one by one, all the customers got rung up by Pinkie Pie and headed straight out of the Candy Cavern, Nicole and Richard about to head in one direction while all the kids went the opposite.
"Oh! Gumball, Darwin, Anais!"
The three children turned to their mother before leaving with their newfound companions.
"I'll be texting you every 30 minutes, so make sure to text me back so I'll know you three are okay."
"Yes ma'am!"
Both the Watterson parents gave their kids a hug before sending them off.
"Have fun, you all!" Richard told them.
The married couple and group of youths went their separate ways in the Deck 5 hallway, ready to enjoy themselves. While Gumball and Darwin conversed with the teens, Anais was stuck in her own thoughts, nervousness building up in her every second the closer they got to the clubs.
'I can't do this, I can't do this, I can't do this!'
If only she had brought Daisy with her, she wouldn't be this scared of being separated from her brothers! She didn't notice they already made it until she bumped against Darwin, who was in front of her the entire time. Against the wall stood the Kids Kove and Tropical T, a pair of glacier frosted glass doors blockading the two separate entrances, commotion going on within both places. The Kids Kove was on the right (the sign contained a cartoony blue cave towering over the bold white letters that served as the title, plastered across its doors), while the Tropical T was on the left (its own sign had the title in black letters, palm trees serving as the 'T's' on a gold rectangular background that was also plastered across its own pair of doors). Gumball and Darwin sensed their younger sister's discomfort, so the former kneeled down in front of her.
"Hey," Gumball spoke to Anais in a gentle tone. "You're going to be fine. If anything goes wrong, you can just text me and Darwin about it."
"Yep!" The middle child smiled.
"If it helps,…" Anne chimed in. "I have a friend that's in the Kids Kove. Her name is Polly Plantar. She's a little pink tadpole with a big yellow polka dotted bow. Just let her know that you know me and that I brought you here. She's pretty fun to hang out with, trust me!"
Anais listened to the older kids' words and felt her fear decrease a little. She took a deep breath and had a small smile on her face.
"Okay. I'm ready."
Darwin offered to hold the small pink rabbit's hand in comfort as Gumball went over to knock on the Kids Kove door a couple of times. In five seconds, there came out a 16-year-old plus-sized Caucasian boy with curly dark brown hair and similar colored eyebrows, and he wore a bright blue shirt with the Kids Kove logo on the upper left under a short-sleeved light pink jacket, blue jeans, and salmon pink flip-flop sandals; his name was Steven Universe.
"Hello there," he greeted the blue cat warmly. "How can I help you?"
"Hey," Gumball greeted back. "My little sister got signed up for the club you work at, but she's kind of nervous."
The 12-year-old stepped aside to let Anais walk up, a shy smile on her face.
"H-hello." She stuttered.
The teenager looked down at the small rabbit, then kneeled down at her level to make her more comfortable.
"Hey there. My name is Steven. I promise that you'll have a good time here."
"You mean it?"
Steven nodded in affirmation. "I mean it."
"You'll take good care of her, right?" Darwin asked the older boy.
"Don't worry, my friends and I are great with little kids, so you'll have nothing to worry about." The 16-year-old reassured the goldfish before turning back to Anais, offering his hand to her. "Are you ready to come in?"
Gathering enough courage, Anais went over to the Kids Kove worker and took his hand, the latter standing up to lead her into the club, but not before the 4-year-old turned back to her brothers.
"Well, I'll see you guys later."
Gumball gave her a thumbs up while Darwin beamed at her.
"Have fun, sis."
"We'll be right next door if you need us."
The youngest Watterson sibling nodded in acknowledgement and followed the kind-hearted teenager into the Kids Kove, the doors closing behind them. Now, it was Gumball and Darwin's turn to enter the Tropical T.
"So, are you guys ready?" Anne questioned the two. She, Little Cato, Manny, and Frida were standing nearby watching the whole exchange, touched by the Watterson boys' concern for their sister.
"Yeah!" They answered in unison.
"Alright!" Manny and Frida cheered.
"Let's do this," Little Cato grinned. He went over to knock on one of the doors of the other club before one of its workers came out.
The worker was a small, orange furry Star Nomad with large expressive eyes and he wore a large, floppy green hat with a black band above the brim and a yellow star located on the brim, a bright yellow shirt with the Tropical T logo on the upper left, white socks with black and yellow lines at the top, and light blue sneakers with black stripes and white laces; his name was Wander.
"Welcome back, you guys!" He greeted the group of kids in a chipper tone.
"Hey, Wander," Little Cato greeted him back. "We brought some new friends with us."
When the friendly extraterrestrial noticed the two new faces, he smiled even wider. "Hello and welcome to the Tropical T! You two are definitely going to have a good time here. Come right in!"
Wander made way for the youths to enter, the doors closing right behind them once they were all inside.