The virus party raged on for what seemed like forever. They had the castle residents running all over, fetching drinks, building cushion forts for them to destroy, and in every spare moment having them clean up the mess they were making so the Virus Bros could make a mess all over again. Anybody who refused found themselves holed up in bed with the worst bug you could imagine.

Count Bleck, Tippi, and Nastasia were catching a few minutes to breathe in the pantry where they were supposed to be getting sandwich fixings.

"Can't you brainwash them or something?" Tippi asked Nastasia desperately.

Nastasia shook her head. "Yeah, that's a big no on that one. Viruses don't have brains, so they can't be brainwashed."

"I'm about ready to just open up and suck them all into the abyss," Count Bleck grumbled as he searched for a good loaf of bread.

"Just hang on," Tippi reassured him. "Fawful will come back and get rid of them."

"Hey!" Weird shouted from the other room. "I'm getting hungry over here! Bring me some sammiches!"

Nastasia twitched slightly.

"Easy, girl," said Tippi. "Think of the chills."

"Think of the fever."

"Think of the weird."

Nastasia tucked a loaf of bread under her arm. "All right, all right." She opened the door and all three of them exited the pantry.

Weird was sitting on the kitchen table. When he saw them, he laughed. "Wow, I guess that makes Count Bleck the new Seven Minutes in Heaven champ!" He slapped his knee. "Seriously, though, I'm hungry. Make with the food or I make with the weird."

Nastasia gritted her teeth. "Right away, sir," she said venomously.

"I don't get it," said Tippi. "What's Weird talking about?"

"... Count Bleck will explain later."

As soon as Nastasia finished making a plate of sandwiches, Weird grabbed it and started bouncing away. "All right! Now we'll have just enough energy to finish remodeling the South Wing."

"Remodeling?" Count Bleck was not pleased.

The three of them chased after Weird. "What do you mean, remodeling?" Tippi demanded.

"Yeah, you haven't filed for any building permits. It takes three to five days to get any clearence!"

Weird waved his hands at them, making all of them as small as Goombettes.

"I think that's cheating," Count Bleck observed. "It's really not a virus power like the other two are."

"I know, but what are you gonna do?" Nastasia said with a shrug. "He kinda has the advantage in this situation."

"I think this whole thing is ridiculous," said Tippi.

It took them forever to catch up with the viruses. What they found when they did was not pretty. The three Virus Bros, as well as hundreds of their tiny virus clones, were swarming the south wing. In the Sun Room, they had gathered an enormous pile of bob-ombs, rob-ombs, and even mezzo bombs. All of these dangerous explosives were piled precariously in the middle of the room among the wicker furniture.

O'chunks was lying miserably on the wicker sofa. Mimi was scampering around the pile, trying to keep its various parts from slipping in case it ignited a spark that set the whole thing off. Dimentio sat on a wicker chair, drinking koopa tea and ignoring. Mr. L was watching helplessly.

"Aw, man," Fever was saying, "This is gonna be the coolest explosion ever."

"You'll level the whole castle," said Mr. L.

"I don't think so," said Chills. "But me, whatever, it ain't my castle. If we do, we'll just go party somewhere else."

"This has to stop," said Count Bleck. "Partying is bad enough, but it's not like we haven't had parties take over the castle before. It took me a lot of work to build this castle and I will not have you leveling it."

O'Chunks groaned, "Don't try an' stop them... they're ruthless."

Fever nudged O'Chunks. "You'd know, right, O'Chunks? Chunky? Chunky-boy. Oh, Chunky-lumpy-thumpy-chunk?"

Dimentio put his teacup and saucer on the wicker end-table by his chair. "My my, do you hear that?"

Everyone else looked up. Now that he mentioned it, they did hear that. It sounded a little like a light motor running and guffawing. It slowly grew louder and louder as whatever it was approached.

"Ah! I have joy!" Fawful, now complete with his Headgear of Doom, came flying into the room like a swooper outta Underwhere. "Fawful has returned!"

"So, whatjya bring me?" Mr. L asked playfully.

"Hey, it's that guy we can't touch!" Fever shouted.

"We missed one?" Weird seemed surprised.

"Do not be having the surprise," said Fawful. "Fawful did not taste the deliciousness of the forest mushrooms and has not become infected with whatever it is that gives you control over other people." Fawful threw one arm out, opening his cape. On his hip he had a net pouch stuffed full of gold-capped mushrooms. "These have been mixed with the this and that Fawful found to be making the cure. Eat! Eat and be healthy!" Fawful scooped out the mushrooms and threw one to each of the infected.

"Hey, stop!" Chills jumped in the air and tried to intercept the mushroom.

"Don't be stupid," said Fever. He bounced around from person to person, giving them all his terrible effect.

"Be strong," said Fawful. "Bite!"

Through the discomfort, they all managed to take a bite out of one of Fawful's mushrooms. Right away the fuschia spots began to fade, and their hunter green pallors reverted to their normal state.

With no one to affect, the tiny clone viruses disappeared in a puff of smoke.

O'Chunks, now feeling much better, got up and crossed his chunks. He glared down at the viruses. Spider-Mimi came up right behind him.

"Uh..." Fever held his hands up. "Now, let's not get too angry."

"Oh, don't worry," said Chills. "If we can't touch them anymore, how can they touch us?"

"Good point," said Dimentio. With a click of his fingers, the three viruses disappeared.

"Where'd you send them?" asked Tippi.

"Where I always send things. Dimension D."

"You do remember we've been using it as a trash dump for at least four months now, right?"

"Are you?" Dimentio took a sip of tea. "Hm. Well, I can't be bothered to keep up on all your activities." He clicked his fingers again, and the pile of bombs disappeared. "Well, as long as it's a dump for unwanted objects, we might as well send those off as well."

Mr. L stood on his toes and held his hand out for a hi-five. "Way to go, Fawful!" Fawful returned it and did a spin.

"Yeah," said Mimi, in her normal body again. "I didn't think you were gonna come back."

"Of course Fawful came back." Fawful put an arm around Mr. L. "Green Thunder Moustache and all of you have become friends of Fawful. To even think of abandoning you would make Fawful sick as if he had ingested the mushrooms of illness-making into his very own stomach."

"Interesting," said Dimentio. "So you can be yourself and be a good person at the same time."

"Of course," said Mr. L. "I never doubted you for a second."

"I have elation!" Fawful did a little twirl in the air. "It is so good to be Fawful!"

He landed on the ground and all the minions came around to congratulate him. It didn't seem possible, but Fawful was grinning even wider than ever before as he shook hands, went in for hugs, and accepted the congratulations of everyone around him. Tears of joy came to his eyes, from a joy greater than that which could be experienced by a henchman or a spider-legged bean head.

Count Bleck and Tippi stood on the front steps of Castle Bleck. They were saying one last goodbye to Fawful before sending him off. Fawful was hovering in the air a few feet away, wearing his stylish Headgear of Doom. Oh, how he'd missed the headgear, though he might have to change the name now that he no longer brought doom of any kind, not even in mustard form.

"So where are you going to go?" asked Tippi.

"Fawful will return to his old home in Beanbean Kingdom," said Fawful. "There he will put his knowledge of the creation and defeating of diseases to work as Doctor Fawful."

"That's wonderful," said Count Bleck. "Count Bleck couldn't be more pleased if he tried."

"Now Fawful must be saying the goodbyes, although they can't be long or drawn-out or Fawful will get tears on his delicious salad of delight which was made by un-tossing the salad of misery."

"I'll miss you, too," said Count Bleck.

"Fawful must tell the world how it came to be that the marvelous Count Bleck taught Fawful how to believe in himself and inspired him to greatness. How he wishes he could stay here with the Count, but the world is for Fawful to make good and now away he must go, off, into the darkness. Thank you again! A thousand million times!"

Count Bleck waved as Fawful zipped away, twirling and looping happily in the air. A few time Fawful turned around and waved, and Count Bleck kept waving back.

"So, could you understand him near the end of his stay, then?" asked Tippi.

"Not a word."

Count Bleck and Tippi laughed. Everything was going to be all right for the little bean man.