Chapter One Hundred and Twenty Eight: Sunshine

 “The world is is illuminated by the sun, heading towards a shining tomorrow, nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah!” Belle and Charlie sang as they entered the hospital waiting room where the others were waiting. Webster followed behind them, amused.

“We just saw the news! Oh Charlie you did it!” Tammy rushed up and hugged Charlie tightly, followed closely by Sunny, Sammy and TJ. A loud snore came from Petunia in the corner.

“Wow, out like a light. Is she overworking herself?” Belle walked over to Petunia and made sure she was covered well by TJs jacket.

“Since the fight with Dan, she's been working longer.” TJ replied bitterly. “I swear if he weren't my best friend I'd kill him.”

“He IS under a lot of pressure though. His girlfriend and his baby are in danger.” Webster pointed out.

“I don't see how that's our fault!” TJ pointed out. “At least ONE of us is always here in case anything goes wrong, we even take shifts overnight, because we want to protect Judith, and that's just not enough for him! He wants Petunia to work for free too!”

“Fear makes people unreasonable. I've been plenty unreasonable myself.” Webster said calmly. “I'm always scared of losing Maddy and Tate just like I lost my best friend. That fear has made me do stupid things.”

“Plus putting up with a bunch of kids in superhero costumes tried your patience.” Belle pointed out. Tammy bopped her on the head. “Owch!”

“Anyway, I'm gonna head back home to Brisvegas. Being here in Pleasantville makes me edgy.” Webster shuddered. “Please look after each other. We're now closer than ever towards cleaning up not just this city, but the whole country.”

“Uh, yikes much?” Charlie asked as Webster left.

—

The changes soon came rapidly. One of the first things Charlie did was make sure that Sammy and Tammys parents could finally own the shop they had been managing for years.

“You want to let THEM own a shop?” Haiter looked at the paper work dismissively. He was still livid that he had lost his power.

“And what, pray tell, is wrong with THEM?” Charlie snatched back the paper work. They were standing in the new Chamber of Commerce office, that was in Pleasantville Shopping Mall.

“You've seen them. Bloody monkeys.” Haiter scoffed.

“I'd watch it Haiter.” Eugenia said drily as she took the paper work from Charlie and put it away. “My father was a 'monkey' as you put it, and he was one of the reasons this very building is standing.”

Haiter bristled, before leaving in a huff. Eugenia scowled after him.

“He's a jerk.” Charlie shook his head.

“A powerful jerk. I don't know how you got him to budge, but you've made an enemy who could very well be the end of you.” Eugenia warned the young man as he gathered up his work and prepared to head back to the metalworks. “Be careful.”

“I'm always careful.” Charlie grinned, before heading back to his own business, which was now thriving again.

Later that day, he handed Sammy, Tammy and their family the news of their new business. Tammy ran laps around the her parents house in glee, while Sammy stood looking at Charlie with tears of happiness in his eyes.

—

“Do we risk going back to the hotel to get our paperwork?” Harold asked as he and Lady sat in their car, which was hidden in a back alley.

“We need our birth certificates at least, and our passports.” Lady told him. “I don't know why we brought them with us.”

“Because we couldn't leave them in the house, they'd have been swiped within an hour after we'd left!” Harold snapped at her. “Damn that brat and her friends! She's pretty much killed us.”

“Don't say that!” Lady cried. “Oh glob, I don't know anymore, we're doomed, we're so utterly doomed, I doubt we'll even get out of the city alive…”

“We just have to do the best we can until we can get out of the city and out of the country.” Harold tried to control his breathing. “We'll go to the Great Nations. They're so war-torn right now that we'll be able to slip under the radar very easily. Start a new life.”

“And to do that we need to go back to the hotel and get our paperwork!” Lady shrieked.

“Will you calm down?!” Harold hissed.

Suddenly something heavy landed on the car…and something wearing blue slid down the bonnet and landed on the ground.

“YOU DROPPED ME AGAIN!”

“IF YOU HAD JUST STAYED STILL WE WOULD HAVE LANDED FINE!”

“Chuckles and Giggles! What do you two want?!” Harold got out of the car.

“Belle contacted us. Here's your stuff from the hotel.” Giggles handed him a small suitcase.

“That worthless piece of trash! What's she playing at?!” Harold snatched the suitcase and went through it. Sure enough, everything they owned was safe, including passports.

“You're still her grand-parents.” Giggles said quietly. “Even if you are criminal scum.”

“Get out of Pleasantville and stay out. You will never be welcome here again.” Chuckles added.

“Can we even get out of Pleasantville safely?” Lady asked.

“You'll have to escape up north through Pleasant Gorge. Then you can double-back along the coast to Brisvegas. From there, you can do what you like.” Chuckles told them. “The Noble Knights of the Last Order have secured the gorge. We'll get you to there.”

Harold glared at the pair while Lady started sobbing. “She was supposed to be ours. She was supposed to make us the top clan in the Haunted Maze Troupe.”

“Well, you should have tried to be in her life when she was younger.” Giggles snapped.

“We couldn't! Her father stopped us!” Lady sobbed.

“You could have.” Giggles glared at her grand-parents. Their blood flowed through her veins too, more's the pity.

Harold and Lady we subdued as they drove out of the city, Chuckles and Giggles keeping a close eye on them. Along the way, they saw their old friends from the Haunted Maze Troupe glaring at them from the shadows, but not daring to step in against the two vigilantes.

Harold and Lady weren't worth the annoyance.

Finally, they made it past Pleasant Gorge and on the road out of Pleasantville. If they headed west, they would have gone to Fallsville, which Giggles advised them was a bad idea.

“Head east. Don't stop in Oaksville. Just keep driving until you hit the coast, then go straight down to Brisvegas. You might need to stop for fuel, wait until you're out of the council area first.” She told them.

“Thank you.” Harold said shortly.

“Please…tell Belle we're sorry.” Lady almost whispered.

“I'll tell her nothing.” Giggles snapped. “Now sod off.”

Harold and Lady drove off. Giggles watched until they disappeared over the horizon, and then she took Chuckles back to Pleasantville.

To finish off the tale of Harold and Lady, they made it out of Ostraya safely and went to live in a little village in the snowy north of the Great Nations. Harold became a great fisherman and Lady made a living as a tour guide. They never spoke of or to their grand-daughter again.