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Mugsy loved her siblings, she really did, she loved and appreciated them very much, especially when they had come to her rescue.
And she knew they worried about her, but there was no reason to be anymore.
The nightmares were no longer an issue, Ludwig was locked up in jail on an island far from Inkwell (and if he somehow got out, he’d be a goner. Someone would get him).
But they were being very annoying with how they kept worrying about her.
Chalice was now a member of the family, and at first it had been really great.
Then she would ask Mugsy every morning if she was alright, if she slept okay, if she needed anything…
After two weeks in a row of that, Mugsy was now getting sick of them both.
Cuphead had followed her just about everywhere, and usually this was how it always is, but it became a problem when Mugsy couldn’t do nearly anything alone.
She only got peace in the bathroom and while she was asleep.
The last straw for her was when Chalice followed along with her brother in watching her every move.
That’s when she decided to make them pay with some lighthearted revenge.
……
Despite Cuphead’s insistence to follow her everywhere from the second they wake up, Mugsy still managed to grab her outfit for the day and slip out to the bathroom without him waking.
She knew Chalice would get him up, but they’d have to wait downstairs for her now.
Five minutes of peace at least for her to get dressed and makeup on.
As she’s getting ready, she can hear her older siblings whispering to each other.
While she can’t hear exactly what they’re saying, she knows it’s about her.
She knows they’ll have a lot more to say when she says when she’s doing today.
For a second, Mugsy seriously considers sneaking out of the house.
But it would ultimately be better to put up with their questions than leave without a word and scare them.
So downstairs and into the kitchen she went.
“You’re up to something,” Chalice said.
“Why would you think that?” Mugsy asked.
“Because you’re dressed all fancy and you were in a hurry to get ready,” Cuphead replied.
She looked at her outfit, a blue dress with white polka dots and a matching hat and shoes.
“It doesn’t look very fancy to me,” she shrugged.
“It’s not what you usually wear, is what I’m saying,” her brother retaliated.
“Because I wanted to look nice today.”
“Why? Are ya going on a date?” Chalice asked, obviously joking.
Clearly neither she or Cuphead expected Mugsy’s answer.
“Actually, I am.”
Her siblings were stunned into silence, so she made her way to the door.
“I’ll be away for a while, so don’t wait around!”
That got them up and moving.
“Who are ya even going with? Do we know ‘em?” Cuphead asked.
“Are you sure you don’t want us to come with?” Chalice added.
Mugsy sighed. “Look, I know you’re both worried but the person I’m going out with is respectful and nice and I do not need or want either of you with me. Just…let me do this on my own, promise?”
The older siblings looked at each other and sighed.
“We promise.”
“Thank you,” she smiled and hugged them, “I’ll be home later, I love you both.”
And then she was away out the door.
….
Okay.
In their defence, they were technically keeping the promise.
AND they lasted five minutes after Mugsy left, that should count for something.
(“Should we have let her go? She says this guy or whoever is nice but no offence to her, she said similar things about that Ludwig and look what happened,” Cuphead said.
“Yeah…. I know she said to let her go alone but I’ve got a bad feeling,” Chalice replied.
“I mean….Mugsy left just five minutes ago.”
“We could stay hidden and just step in if something happens.”
“Should we?”
“Yeah, let’s go.”)
So now here they are, hiding in a bush stg the park.
They hadn’t found Mugsy yet, but somehow they just knew she’d be there.
“Look, there she is!” Chalice whispered.
Sure enough, Mugsy was walking through the park.
Holding hands with….
“Bowlboy!?” Cuphead whisper-yelled, barely containing his shock and horror.
(Memories of Bowlboy saying he wanted to become him came to mind)
Since he couldn’t break the promise to his sister (his little sister, his and Chalice’s baby sister who should be protected against people like Bowlboy and maybe not be going on a date with him-) he couldn’t exactly run out there and put a stop to it.
No, the older siblings could only watch as Mugsy and Bowlboy (no matter how much Cuphead wanted to stop it) had a picnic in the park.
…
The next place they went was the theatre to watch Sally Stageplay’s newest play.
Cuphead and Chalice of course followed.
“It doesn’t look like anything bad will happen,” Chalice whispered.
“I don’t know….” Cuphead hadn’t seen anything to suggest Bowlboy would hurt Mugsy (and he better not or else he’d get the rage of two angry older siblings, he better not even THINK about hurting her).
“…we could follow them one more time and then leave?” Chalice was honestly reluctant to leave too in case anything happened, but at the same time she felt guilty for pretty much breaking the promise.
“One more time,” Cuphead agreed.
….
They followed Mugsy and Bowlboy to the arcade.
This was a location where Cuphead and Chalice could hear what they were saying.
“We should do this again sometime,” Mugsy said.
“Well, I’d love to! I really like spending time with you,” Bowlboy replied.
“I really like spending time with you too. We should go on another date tomorrow, you can come meet me at the cottage.”
“I can do that!”
“But we need to be sneaky, I don’t want my siblings to know yet. You’ve heard what they’re like.”
“Oh, that’s not a problem. I’ll be quiet when I come around.”
“Thanks, and it’s just this once. I’ll tell them I’m seeing someone tomorrow.”
This whole day was officially Cuphead’s worst nightmare.
Out of everyone in Inkwell (even if no one would ever be good enough to date his little sister) why did it have to be Bowlboy?
“Let’s go,” he said to Chalice.
She couldn’t agree more.
….
Mugsy came home late.
She had went to dinner with Bowlboy and he had walked her home at the end of a wonderful day.
The cottage was dark when she got back but the second she stepped into the living room, the lamp was turned on.
Revealing her siblings waiting for her.
“Hey, Mugsy. You’ve been gone for a while,” Cuphead said.
“Yeah, where we’re you?” Chalice added.
“I think you both know since you followed me around,” Mugsy replied.
Her siblings didn’t know what to say.
“I wasn’t on a real date today, Bowlboy was in on it. And you both believed it,” she grinned.
“Wait, you weren’t actually on a date with Bowlboy?” Cuphead was so relieved to hear this.
“But why did you convince us you were?” Chalice asked.
Mugsy sighed. “Because you two have been so overbearing and overprotective that I’ve felt suffocated. For once, I wanted a mostly normal day without that.
The older siblings looked guilty now.
Finally being told they had been too much.
Their little sister went on. “I know you’re both worried something’s going to happen to me, but I want to be able to walk out of this house without either of you coming with me just to look out for me. It has to stop, both inside and outside of this house.”
“….but you’ll still come tell us if you need help?” Cuphead asked.
“Always, you’re my big brother and big sister. But I can look out for myself in the meantime, okay?”
“Okay,” they both nodded.
Mugsy grinned, triumphant. “Thank you.”