by TheTimeTrust and T5
That morning, Pete Glover hurriedly chomped down as much food as he could while he began talking to his new friends.
"So y'shee -- CHOMP-MUNCH -- I need a couple'a ya -- CRUNCH-SLURP -- ta come with me -- SNORK-CRUM -- an' e'splain ta dis Piper buddy -- SCHNORFEL-SCHWEITZER -- allabout what we need ta get -- HOOORK-FLUB -- our li'l club in order."
Shirley Francis just stood there disgusted at the mess he made of the kitchen table. Everyone else was impressed at how much food he could stuff into his little body.
"Well, uh, Pete," began Lance Lorenzo, "I know it's your money and all, but... are you sure we can trust this guy? I mean, you're lucky and all, but you're hardly infallible."
"Whuddubuh?" Pete said with a mouthful of ham sandwich as he looked up for a moment from his meal.
"EEEEeeeewwwwww!" Shirley finally said and ran out of the kitchen.
Danny Hearn watched her go and turned back to Pete. "Lance means that your luck can only go so far. I'm not sure I agree with him, though. It seems that we've been on the run for so long that we need some stability so that we can figure out what to do with our gifts."
"I doubt we need to bring in a two-bit, washed-up salesman to show us what to do with ourselves, Dan," said Marv Velo, who had just walked in after overhearing the conversation. "And, Pete, you're not going anywhere."
"Mmm?" Pete mumbled while slurping up a bowl of soup.
"Hey, Velo, that's kind of harsh," said Sam Dawson. "I know I'm the newest member of our little former circus troupe, here, but we're all equals, and I've gotta have my say. Pete's a good guy. A little bit frazzled from the curve balls life's thrown at him, but he's a good guy nonetheless. And it may be true that all the money he now has was granted to him by pure luck, but it's still his cash, and I know that if it were my money, I'd hate to have anyone else tell me what to do with it."
"Listen, Sam..." Velo said carefully, "...I know you consider Pete a friend, but... we can't have one guy who just happens to possess a great deal of incredible luck to set the course of destiny for our entire group. This should be something we all decide together, especially ever since Edulcore's death."
"Pete's not just our friend, Velo," said Danny, "he's our teammate. And he's a human being. Why do you talk about him as if he's not sitting right in front of you?"
Velo shook his head and visibly relaxed. "Sheesh, guys, I can't seem to do anything right today, can I?" He turned to the former street beggar and asked him, "Well, Pete? What do you think? You've been fairly silent on the matter so far."
"Oh, uhh... welll..." Pete began, wiping the food muck onto the sleeves of his tailor-made Armani shirt, which now looked like it had been purchased at the Salvation Army Thrift Shop. "I likes ya, Velo. I likes all'a'ya. But what I don't likes is ta be a pain ta any'a'yers. If'n this is such a problem, I'll give all'a ya my money an' controllin' stocks o' BountyLand Foods an' thad free trip inta space from the Russians I won if it'll keep ya from arguin' wid' each udder. It's not like I needs it me'self, anyways."
"You don't have to do that, Pete!" Sam said quickly.
"Are you serious, Pete?" asked Velo, raising an eyebrow.
"Dead serious, b'y."
"That's... very generous of you," said Velo.
"Pete, are you sure about this?" asked Danny.
"Tha's what I said, innit? Mebbe we could creates some kinda... uh... foundation er sumthin', ya know? Sumthin' which would funds the group an' keeps the peace. Thad way none'a us would have that ta argue 'bout any longers. An' we could use all'a thad money to pay ourselves a nice little salary, not ta mention each of us ownin' shares of our own company that we could profits from if we wanted. Tha's all I'm sayin'. An' if we wanna begin a company, we'll need someone with some bus'ness experience an' all ta help run it fer us. But he'll be workin' fer us, not the other way 'round."
Nobody said anything for a few moments. Finally, Velo spoke up.
"I like it," he said simply. "You know, I really like this idea a lot. I'm still not sure about this Piper guy, but... this could really work to our benefit. Do you still have his phone number, Pete?"
"Yah, b'y, I'm goin' ta meets 'im as soon as I finishes muh grub."
"Well, I think I'd like to go with you," said Velo.
"I'm coming, too," said Sam. He added, "Well, I am the only one of us familiar with this island."
"Okay, then, it's settled," said Velo. "As soon as we're done with breakfast, the three of us will go to meet Kit Piper and figure out if he has anything to offer us. If not, we can figure something else out then."
A few blocks away from the Revolutionaries' apartment complex, a small herb shop opened for business. A young dark girl with multicolored pearls in her hair takes out a small carpet and shakes dust out of it.
Inside, a old woman calls for her, saying, "Flower? I need your help in here."
"Sure, Ma Kalunga, just a second." The day was warm, and the gravel road outside the shop dusty. She squinted her eyes and looked down the road. "The one with many faces is here..."