[IC] Banding Together in Halloween Town

[LePouvantail]

Shock pondered it, then smirked.

"I think we can make an arrangement," she said.

She glanced over Carver's body.

"We'll have the to be careful, though," she said. "Mortals don't come in pumpkin orange."

[SystemofEleven]

Carver rolled his eyes -- a feature he would probably never stop enjoying -- and said, "They don't have shark teeth or jaundice yellow skin, either, but you manage just fine. Humans will believe almost any excuse you give them. I once told a guy in a robotic voice that I was a prototype patrol scarecrow, and he believed me."

He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Though, if we go to Portland, nobody would even expect an excuse, anyway..."

[LePouvantail]

"I can play dumb and mortal boys won't even ask," Shock said.

She grinned.

"They tend to not notice my teeth if they're looking to score."

Shock cackled.

"Or New York City."

[SystemofEleven]

Carver shook his head. "Portland. Generally more pleasantly dingy, and way fewer idiots per square mile. I think we'd get in trouble for giving another Handsy McGee our personal attention outside the season, and now we both have... well, what looks like boobs, anyway."

[LePouvantail]

"Point," Shock said.

She glanced over at the slide. She vaguely heard noise from the lair from Lock trying to free himself.

"We'll just need to let the boys know we'll be gone for a little...trip."

[SystemofEleven]

Carver cackled, "I'll do it!"

He crossed his arms casually behind his head and dove down the slide on his back, head-first. He'd always wanted to try it, but had to be careful with his normal noggin. Upon entering the lair, he strode over to the boys and crouched down by Barrel's legs. Lock had managed to squirm most of his way out from under his brother; just another couple of seconds--

"Hey, Lock. When Barrel wakes up, let him know Shock and I are going out shopping in the mortal world."

Before Lock could answer, Carver balled up his fist and gave Barrel's leg a solid punch.

"By the way, your pajama bottoms should really go in the laundry."

With that, he waved and got up to leave.

[LePouvantail]

Shock watched him disappear down the slide, then went to the armory for her bag of tricks. She never knew what to expect from mortals, and liked to be prepared for any troublemaking opportunities. She then headed for the graveyard to wait for Carver.

Down below, Lock had only his calves pinned under Barrel. One more heave--

And then he saw Carver.

"Sure, whatev--"

But Carver had already punched Barrel. The big oaf kicked at Carver in response, and in the process, rolled over. Lock found himself pinned from the waist down under Barrel's weight.

"CARVER!"

Lock clawed at the ground and tried to wedge himself back out. Barrel snorted, but relaxed again.

"I'm gonna tighten your bolts!" Lock screamed as Carver climbed up the ladder and out of the lair.

~~~

Over the next few days, Shock spent some time planning out trouble. The Halloween high had worn off, and while Portland was fun, she didn't want to stay longer than needed. She was also still a bit bitter about Jack shaming her in front of her brothers, so she spent time crafting some vengeance against him that wouldn't go too far. Plus, Halloween Town needed a reminder here and there that even the Pumpkin King wasn't immune to her troublemaking whims. It helped keep the town on their toes and think twice about crossing her and her brothers.

Lock and Barrel knew she was up to something, but as she didn't want their help, they figured this was a trick she wanted to pull on her own. They got further confirmation with the occasionally overheard muttering of, "that Pumpkin Puss" and "show him some real trouble." Both of them knew that she was keeping them out of it in case something went wrong. Much like the rule of the lair, tricks against Jack had to be agreed upon together. No agreement meant those not involved with it were relieved of responsibility. And Lock and Barrel were happy to let Shock take a solo gamble if she felt the trick was worth it. Even Jack understood the unspoken rule not to blame them if they testified against her - something the trio rarely did to one another.

Of course, they weren't going to warn Jack of the trick ahead of time, either. Better to ask forgiveness than permission, after all, and their loyalty to each other came first and foremost.

Barrel got a glimpse of her plans when he went to tend to the scorpions. Shock sometimes used her scorpion room as a sort of office when she wanted time alone. He glanced through some of her papers on the table, then giggled when he saw some of the things she had planned. Barrel then went back to his chores. He was certain Shock would let him and Lock know when she was ready to enact her plans so they could witness it firsthand.

Once the tanks were done, he went to the kitchen to make a final check of things they needed, then it was off to the Witches Shop to replenish some supplies. Shock's plans quickly took a back seat as he thought of the rotten fish stew and oyster shell crackers he was going to make for dinner tonight. A brief thought of maybe having Agatha over crossed his mind, but he quickly pushed it back.

Best not to invite anyone over while his sister was involved in mayhem against the Pumpkin King. His stinging hands from stabbing and clawing scorpions was enough of a reminder of his older sister's potential vengeance.

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha hummed a death march cheerfully to herself as she dusted the shelves in the shop. Barrel hadn't come in to talk to her since their date, but she'd found a small bouquet of flowers outside their door one evening with a card attached to it, written in his handwriting. She wondered how much time he had spent learning her schedule so that he could deliver the gift unseen. Of course, handing it to her himself would be too cliche for him; going the subtle and mysterious route was much more his thing. She was touched by how personal the gesture was.

[LePouvantail]

Barrel arrived soon enough. Carver had him write a follow-up card as an "assurance" to be delivered with some potion ingredients. That was far from his mind as he was more concerned with getting garlic, unripe tomatoes, and a few other things before heading to the market for less specialty ingredients. They were definitely running low on alligator eyes.

"Hi, Agatha!" he said cheerfully, as he entered with a basket under his arm not only for carrying things back, but holding a few items to trade.

[SystemofEleven]

"Welcome to the Witches Sh-- Barrel!" Agatha grinned and bounced across the store to hug him. Obviously, kissing in public would be a bit too far for his aloof preferences, but hugging wouldn't be too bad, right? She'd seen him give Carver a bear hug once, at least.

"Thank you so much for the flow-- Ahhh, I mean..." She coughed and reeled herself in a bit. "Thank you for the gift. It was... quite exquisite, and much appreciated."

[LePouvantail]

Barrel didn't expect the hug. Dinner must have gone better than he thought! He awkwardly returned it with a gentle pat on her back.

"Hey. Glad you liked them. I'm sure they'll come in handy."

He'd have to thank Carver for his assistance later. The fact that Agatha didn't immediately kick him out said enough. Barrel pulled out a scrap of paper that contained his list.

"Anyway, I only needed a few things. Do you have any of those extra large jars of alligator eyes? I swear Shock goes through them like candy."

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha kept grinning as they pulled apart. He'd touched her! And more than that, he actually knew that the flowers would be excellent potions ingredients once they were a bit too dry to display. He'd done his research, and gotten her something that specifically touched on her interests!

She quickly contained herself, smoothing out her features to an expression of professional politeness. She took the list from him and looked it over.

"Mmm, yes, we do have that in stock," she told him. "If she goes through them that fast, perhaps even two jars would be a good idea. Now the rest of these things... Are you sure they're not going to be used for any trouble? I'd hate for you to get banned from the shop again so soon after things have gotten... interesting." She winked at him.

[LePouvantail]

"Yeah, you're right," Barrel said. "Might be a good idea to keep a second one in the pantry for when the first one gets low. Good idea, thanks!"

Barrel let her take the list.

"Nah, I'm just stocking the cupboards," he said. "Shock's already got everything she needs for Jack's hou--"

Bones. Bones, bones, bones, bones, BONES!

"--ow much are two jars?" he asked quickly.

Maybe Agatha didn't hear that. Oh please let this be one time she thinks he's bumbling!

[SystemofEleven]

The young witch raised her eyebrows at that. Jack's house? What did Jack have to do with-- Then Barrel backpedaled, pretending he didn't know how much one of his staple purchases cost. AH. That was how things related.

Agatha smiled sweetly. "Oh, it's a good thing you asked. The price has actually gone up a bit. Supply and demand, you know. Have to keep Shock happy though, don't we?"

She cheerfully went to retrieve the other items on his list, and began ringing them all up. The register had a button for miscellaneous items, which she used to account for the "increase" in price.

[LePouvantail]

Good, Barrel thought. She didn't notice.

He mentally kicked himself for nearly ruining Shock's trick. Scorpion care wouldn't be nearly enough to curb her wrath if Jack found out what she was up to. Barrel was so relieved, he didn't even notice Agatha bumped up the price a bit.

"Right," he said distractedly, his mind more on Shock's narrowly-avoided wrath than the alligator eyes. Barrel reached into the basket and set down a few jars of lake moss as an equivalent trade. "Gotta keep her happy. I'm already doing scorpion care for messing up one of her tricks. I don't even want to know what she'd do if I screw up another one."

Barrel flexed his hand once he set the jars down. The stings had dulled down, but still hurt. The scorpions went out of their way to pinch and sting - something Shock encouraged not only for her own amusement, but to make any would-be thieves think twice before she got their hands on them. It was a big reason why he and Lock disliked handling them unless absolutely necesssary.

"But thanks. Getting another jar will probably help!"

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha picked up the jars to examine their contents for a moment, then set the register to subtract the value of the moss from his total.

"You're welcome. Glad to help! Now, you're still... six knucklebones short, for this purchase," she informed him. "Do you have any change, or something else to trade? Or should I put the remainder on you and your siblings' tab, and have Shock cover the difference next time she brings a delivery?"

[LePouvantail]

"Six knucklebones...?"

Barrel stared at her, dumbfounded for a moment.

"How am I short?"

Still, he checked his pockets for something besides candy to trade with. At the mention of putting it on the tab, he panicked again. That's what got him in trouble with Shock to begin with.

"N-no need," he said. "I'm sure I got something..."

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha cackled quietly. "I told you, dearie. The alligator eyes. It costs more. To keep Shock happy, remember?"

She leaned in and whispered, "Because if I didn't catch the mention of Jack the first time, I definitely would have caught the part where you were worried about messing up one of your sister's tricks."

She winked at him and pulled back a bit, leaning forward just enough to give him a good angle of her nose and chest. "But I'm sure you can think of something to give me, to make my silence worth while..."

She refrained from batting her eyelashes at him, just in case that was a hair too obvious for his tastes. Luckily for him, she wasn't too worried about Shock pulling anything too severe against the Pumpkin King, especially so soon after the Halloween high. But she'd still love to get a kiss for not ratting, anyway.

[LePouvantail]

Bones. She knew. Barrel swallowed hard. How did he keep getting himself into these messes?

"R-right," he said quietly.

He quickly racked his brain for something to trade with. He couldn't give her anything else in the basket, as he needed them to get the rest of his groceries when he was done here. And he didn't have anything else on his person except his slingshot, two rocks for ammo, and plenty of candy. There had to be something in the lair he could--

Wait. There was something he could give her. There was a death scarab on his shelf. They weren't worth nearly as much as scorpion venom, but they were hard to come by, and highly prized by many Halloween Town citizens. Barrel grimaced. He'd been saving it for something special.

On the other hand...his other option was to let Shock pick up the tab. And she'd want to know why he cost her her wares. Again. And he knew better than to lie to her, because she had a way of wringing the truth out of him.

Barrel let out a small sigh.

"...All right," he said. "I have a scarab beetle I can give you, but I have to go home to get it."

He lowered his voice.

"To keep Shock happy."

He met her gaze and grinned, but there was a glint in his eyes and a tight edge to his smile more reminiscent of Lock and Shock's deviousness. It was often easy to assume Barrel was the odd one out in the group, with his more lax demeanor, rotound figure and round face compared to Lock and Shock's spiky thinness, and being the least troublesome on his own, but once in a while, his relationship to his older siblings shone through clearly.

Like when he knew it was a time to not be messed with any further. Especially when he had his older sister's wrath on the line.

"And nothing makes her happier than a perfect trick. Which I didn't mess up."

Barrel's face and demeanor seemed to soften. He actually giggled.

"It'd probably be funny if someone else did, though."

[SystemofEleven]

Agatha cackled again, leaning back. Okay, so she wasn't getting a kiss. But he was clearly giving her permission -- ney, even implicably requesting -- that she interfere in Shock's affairs. After all, the oldest trickster had been using his feeling against them both as well; he just couldn't retaliate directly because of his gentlemanly nature.

Oh! She suddenly realized. Of course! He hadn't actually blabbed about the prank on accident; he was just giving himself plausible deniability is he got caught!

The teen witch thought quietly to herself for a moment. On the one hand, he was obviously willing to pay her for a reverse-prank, and she did really enjoy getting as much out of every transaction as possible. On the other hand, though... It wouldn't be fair for her to charge for covering a mistake he hadn't actually made...

Agatha cleared her throat. "Actually, nevermind about the scarab. I'll cover the extra cost this time around. But next time, be a little more prepared, okay?" She gave him a conspiratorial wink.