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Description
"Hey, Nani! We need your help!"
Nani Pelekai placed aside the cloth she was using to wipe down the living room windows of their beachside house. She turned over to see her little sister Lilo rush up to her with an excited smile stretched across her face, with her best friend Stitch just a few steps behind her.
"Sure, Lilo. What's wrong?" Nani asked.
"Oh, nothing! We just need your help to make our house look like an evil lair because one of Jumba's evil scientist friends is visiting us next Tuesday!"
Nani's mouth hung agape as she was processing what Lilo just told her, while the latter simply grinned as she treated the statement like a completely normal affair. Then again, ever since Lilo and Stitch took it upon themselves to track down Jumba's rogue experiments across Kokaua Town, their lives have been everything but normal. Nani figured she should take situations like this in stride by now, but another mad scientist from outer space?
"Please don't tell me this guy has his own collection of experiments that're gonna wreak havoc across town like Jumba's..." Nani pinched the bridge of her nose to hold back the imminent headache.
"Eh, is more complicated than that," Jumba said, sporting a sheepish grin as he lumbered down the staircase. "Little Girl has promised to show Mortlegax the Malignant that I am still as much evil genius as I was before coming to Earth."
"And 'Mortlegax the Malignant' is...?" Nani placed a hand on her hip.
"The chairman of Evil Geniuses Organization, or E.G.O. for short."
Nani pressed her lips as her headache started to worsen. "And you want to bring him here? To our home? Where Stitch's cousins are still running amuck all over the island?"
"Oh, not to worry! Mortlegax has no interest in my experiments... a-at least, not right now." Jumba muttered that part under his breath. "We just need to be convincing him that I am still in evil genius department."
"Please, Nani," Lilo begged. "This is really, really important to Jumba. It'll only just be for one day, I promise!"
"Pleease??" Stitch knelt into a pleading position and batted his eyelids for extra effect.
Nani rolled her eyes, unfazed, but eventually sighed exhaustedly. "Fine. But only if you promise me you'll clean everything up after?"
"Deal!" Lilo sprinted over and wrapped her sister in a bear-hug. "Thanks, Nani! You're the best!"
Stitch chortled joyfully as he hugged Nani's ankle.
"Okay, okay, you two!" Nani couldn't help but chuckle as she shook the two off her, before turning to where Jumba gave her a grateful smile. "So, how's this going to work? Is Lilo gonna be your 'evil assistant' or something?"
"No, no. That honor falls to Experiment 626."
"Feeboogoo!" Stitch hunched over as he theatrically flexed his claws.
"Right, well, I guess I'll just hang out in the attic when you guys do your early Halloween skit," Nani replied.
"Actually..." Jumba rubbed the back of his neck.
"What?"
"...I was actually talking with Little Girl about a different role for you to better convince Mortlegax."
"What?" Nani didn't like where this was headed. She looked down at where Lilo tugged at her pants to get her attention.
"Remember that old scary movie we watched a couple years ago, where that one lady was kidnapped to be used for that crazy scientist's experiments?"

"I don't know how she talks me into these things."
Nani sat in a chair in the hallway outside of the living room, which had been redecorated to look like something right out of a 70s horror film. She shifted around uncomfortably in the sticky adhesive substance that Stitch had wrapped her up in. Apparently, Jumba and Lilo thought it would be a good idea to add in a damsel-in-distress to really sell the whole 'evil genius' gimmick they had going on. Nani would've been happy to play along without being tied up, but she found herself outvoted. She glanced down at where she was guarded by Stitch, who was dressed similarly to the Hunchback of Notre Dame, as he cackled mischievously at Nani's predicament.
"Count yourself lucky I don't shave you," Nani snarked.
"Disfigured assistant!" Jumba called from the living room. "Is time for the Grossification Chamber!"
Stitch motioned for Nani to follow him, right as Lilo showed up and prodded her with the back of a broomstick. Nani mustered what little patience she had left as she was escorted into the makeshift laboratory. Begrudgingly, Nani relented that the others did a pretty great job overall, but was also curious about how and where Jumba managed to store away all of his gadgets.
"I, Jumba Jookiba, Evil Genius, have declared war on beauty itself!"
"Oh. I am so frightened," Nani recited her lines in the most unenthusiastic tone imaginable. She was guided by Lilo and Stitch to a large cardboard box with light bulbs and wires taped to its sides. On the door of the 'chamber', there was a dial placed under a meter drawn on its surface that ranged between Pretty and Ugly.
Talk about low-budget, Nani thought to herself, but was brought back to reality by another poke from the broom Lilo held. Stitch crawled to the top of the box and opened it, beckoning for Nani to enter.
"Whatever will you do to me? You evil, evil man?" Nani recited her next (and thankfully, last) line. She sent one last pointed glare at Lilo before Stitch closed the box with her inside.
"I can turn even the most attractive people into grotesque monstrosities!" Jumba bellowed as he turned the dial on the box.
On cue, the hidden audio speakers played the sounds of buzzing electricity, while Lilo flickered the lights on and off. As Nani awkwardly stood inside the box, Pleakley climbed up from the hidden trapdoor leading into the basement. Nani balked at how he was dressed exactly like her, even finishing the ensemble with makeup and a wig. She definitely didn't remember this being part of the act.
"Uh, I thought it would look convincing." Pleakley shrugged apologetically. "'Scuse me!"
Nani grunted as Pleakley attempted to shuffle around her without knocking her over. "Hey, watch it, buster!"
"Sorry!" Pleakley whispered.
Nani tiptoed down into the basement as Pleakley carefully closed the trapdoor behind her, enshrouding her in darkness. The only lights that illuminated the room shone from the gaps between the floorboards above her head.
"Behold!" Jumba declared as he re-opened the box.
"Oh, no! What have you done?!" Pleakley shrieked. "Moments ago, I was a beautiful woman in the prime of youth! And now, I'm... I'm..."
Nani strained her ears as she heard Jumba whisper something to Pleakley.
"Well, I wouldn't say 'hideous'."
The floorboards shook as Jumba stomped on one of Pleakley's three feet. But while Nani smirked at the small act of comeuppance, she soon tripped over an unseen object while stepping back from the trapdoor. She yelped as she landed facefirst in a large pile of rolled-up socks, causing three pairs to end up jammed into Nani's mouth. Lifting herself onto her knees, Nani wrestled her jaws to push the socks out of her mouth, but it was clear they wouldn't budge. Nani mumbled curses behind her packed mouth before she lifted her head to the floor above her.
"Hhhhlllpp!!" Nani screamed as loudly as she could behind her makeshift gag. But the others in the living room were too engrossed in conversation to notice her.
"So, you extend my membership in E.G.O.?" Jumba eagerly asked Mortlegax.
"Perhaps... But first, I really should see some of your other experiments at work on the island."
"Fortunately, thanks to evil genius hacking of secret spy satellites, cable provider, and neighbor's wireless network, Jumba has multi-camera recordings of experiments in action!"
Nani shook her head exasperatedly as the living room became filled with the audio of videos from Lilo and Stitch's past encounters with Jumba's experiments. Growling behind her sock-crammed jaws, Nani wrestled to free herself from her bindings and give Jumba a piece of her mind, all concerns about his reputation and membership at E.G.O. completely gone. She paced around the basement in search of any sharp tools or long objects that could help her break out of the rubber cement-like adhesive that encased her upper body. She tried wedging a closed umbrella between her bindings, only for it to pop open and send her falling flat on her back. She then rubbed her slimy bindings against the edge of an old coffee table, only for it to produce no results. Huffing through her nose, Nani began stomping her way up the stairs to the trapdoor, when she heard Mortlegax's disgusted voice.
"Well, Jumba! I think it's clear that you do not belong in the Evil Geniuses Organization! Good day!"
"Maybe we should start our own club," Lilo then suggested.
Nani sat down on one of the stairs and started kicking at the trapdoor. After three good kicks, Jumba swung the door open. The massive alien shrunk back at Nani's heated gaze.
"Uh, heh heh... So, bad news... My membership to E.G.O. has been revoked," Jumba bemoaned.
"Yhh dhnt shhy?" Nani raised an unimpressed brow at him.
Lilo hurried over and yanked the socks out of Nani's mouth as she spit out any stray fabric strands.
"Sorry about that, Nani," Lilo apologized.
"Look on the bright side! I think you did a decent acting job!" Pleakley offered.
Nani slowly turned to stare at Pleakley, who quickly pulled off his wig and hid it behind his back. She then whipped her head to face Jumba.
"Give me one - one - good reason why I shouldn't let Bubbles know you've been hacking into top-secret satellites, or our neighbor's WiFi."
Jumba stuttered for a convincing answer, but Lilo protectively stepped in front of him. "They'll help us clean!"
"A-Absolutely!" Pleakley picked up a nearby dustpan.
Jumba nodded. "Is least we can do for all the stress, I suppose."
Nani sagged her shoulders. "...It's a bummer about your membership, though."
Jumba waved it off. "Easy come, easy go, as you Earthlings say."
"Don't worry, Jumba. Like I said, we can set up our own club." Lilo comforted him.
"Oh, no! This place already looks like a Frankenstein's lab! We're not doing any more redecorating!" Nani protested.
"No crazy decorations, promise! It'll be completely low-key," Lilo quickly replied. "Plus, there'll be strawberry pie."
Nani's next protest died on her lips before she frowned. "How dare you use my favorite dessert against me?"
"Is it working?"
Nani groaned. "Somebody get me out of this stuff and get rid of all the spooky doodads." She darted her head again at Pleakley. "And maybe, I'll forget about asking where you got that wig."
Pleakley giggled fearfully as he helped Lilo and Jumba pack up all the laboratory props, while Stitch used his claws to cut through Nani's bindings like butter.
Not for the first time, Nani wondered how her life had become so chaotic.

--Consider this an extended scene from "Ace", the twenty-third episode from the second season of Lilo & Stitch: The Series.
--Nani is a pretty underrated character in the franchise, and a fairly underrated damsel too.

Description
"Hey, Nani! We need your help!"
Nani Pelekai placed aside the cloth she was using to wipe down the living room windows of their beachside house. She turned over to see her little sister Lilo rush up to her with an excited smile stretched across her face, with her best friend Stitch just a few steps behind her.
"Sure, Lilo. What's wrong?" Nani asked.
"Oh, nothing! We just need your help to make our house look like an evil lair because one of Jumba's evil scientist friends is visiting us next Tuesday!"
Nani's mouth hung agape as she was processing what Lilo just told her, while the latter simply grinned as she treated the statement like a completely normal affair. Then again, ever since Lilo and Stitch took it upon themselves to track down Jumba's rogue experiments across Kokaua Town, their lives have been everything but normal. Nani figured she should take situations like this in stride by now, but another mad scientist from outer space?
"Please don't tell me this guy has his own collection of experiments that're gonna wreak havoc across town like Jumba's..." Nani pinched the bridge of her nose to hold back the imminent headache.
"Eh, is more complicated than that," Jumba said, sporting a sheepish grin as he lumbered down the staircase. "Little Girl has promised to show Mortlegax the Malignant that I am still as much evil genius as I was before coming to Earth."
"And 'Mortlegax the Malignant' is...?" Nani placed a hand on her hip.
"The chairman of Evil Geniuses Organization, or E.G.O. for short."
Nani pressed her lips as her headache started to worsen. "And you want to bring him here? To our home? Where Stitch's cousins are still running amuck all over the island?"
"Oh, not to worry! Mortlegax has no interest in my experiments... a-at least, not right now." Jumba muttered that part under his breath. "We just need to be convincing him that I am still in evil genius department."
"Please, Nani," Lilo begged. "This is really, really important to Jumba. It'll only just be for one day, I promise!"
"Pleease??" Stitch knelt into a pleading position and batted his eyelids for extra effect.
Nani rolled her eyes, unfazed, but eventually sighed exhaustedly. "Fine. But only if you promise me you'll clean everything up after?"
"Deal!" Lilo sprinted over and wrapped her sister in a bear-hug. "Thanks, Nani! You're the best!"
Stitch chortled joyfully as he hugged Nani's ankle.
"Okay, okay, you two!" Nani couldn't help but chuckle as she shook the two off her, before turning to where Jumba gave her a grateful smile. "So, how's this going to work? Is Lilo gonna be your 'evil assistant' or something?"
"No, no. That honor falls to Experiment 626."
"Feeboogoo!" Stitch hunched over as he theatrically flexed his claws.
"Right, well, I guess I'll just hang out in the attic when you guys do your early Halloween skit," Nani replied.
"Actually..." Jumba rubbed the back of his neck.
"What?"
"...I was actually talking with Little Girl about a different role for you to better convince Mortlegax."
"What?" Nani didn't like where this was headed. She looked down at where Lilo tugged at her pants to get her attention.
"Remember that old scary movie we watched a couple years ago, where that one lady was kidnapped to be used for that crazy scientist's experiments?"

"I don't know how she talks me into these things."
Nani sat in a chair in the hallway outside of the living room, which had been redecorated to look like something right out of a 70s horror film. She shifted around uncomfortably in the sticky adhesive substance that Stitch had wrapped her up in. Apparently, Jumba and Lilo thought it would be a good idea to add in a damsel-in-distress to really sell the whole 'evil genius' gimmick they had going on. Nani would've been happy to play along without being tied up, but she found herself outvoted. She glanced down at where she was guarded by Stitch, who was dressed similarly to the Hunchback of Notre Dame, as he cackled mischievously at Nani's predicament.
"Count yourself lucky I don't shave you," Nani snarked.
"Disfigured assistant!" Jumba called from the living room. "Is time for the Grossification Chamber!"
Stitch motioned for Nani to follow him, right as Lilo showed up and prodded her with the back of a broomstick. Nani mustered what little patience she had left as she was escorted into the makeshift laboratory. Begrudgingly, Nani relented that the others did a pretty great job overall, but was also curious about how and where Jumba managed to store away all of his gadgets.
"I, Jumba Jookiba, Evil Genius, have declared war on beauty itself!"
"Oh. I am so frightened," Nani recited her lines in the most unenthusiastic tone imaginable. She was guided by Lilo and Stitch to a large cardboard box with light bulbs and wires taped to its sides. On the door of the 'chamber', there was a dial placed under a meter drawn on its surface that ranged between Pretty and Ugly.
Talk about low-budget, Nani thought to herself, but was brought back to reality by another poke from the broom Lilo held. Stitch crawled to the top of the box and opened it, beckoning for Nani to enter.
"Whatever will you do to me? You evil, evil man?" Nani recited her next (and thankfully, last) line. She sent one last pointed glare at Lilo before Stitch closed the box with her inside.
"I can turn even the most attractive people into grotesque monstrosities!" Jumba bellowed as he turned the dial on the box.
On cue, the hidden audio speakers played the sounds of buzzing electricity, while Lilo flickered the lights on and off. As Nani awkwardly stood inside the box, Pleakley climbed up from the hidden trapdoor leading into the basement. Nani balked at how he was dressed exactly like her, even finishing the ensemble with makeup and a wig. She definitely didn't remember this being part of the act.
"Uh, I thought it would look convincing." Pleakley shrugged apologetically. "'Scuse me!"
Nani grunted as Pleakley attempted to shuffle around her without knocking her over. "Hey, watch it, buster!"
"Sorry!" Pleakley whispered.
Nani tiptoed down into the basement as Pleakley carefully closed the trapdoor behind her, enshrouding her in darkness. The only lights that illuminated the room shone from the gaps between the floorboards above her head.
"Behold!" Jumba declared as he re-opened the box.
"Oh, no! What have you done?!" Pleakley shrieked. "Moments ago, I was a beautiful woman in the prime of youth! And now, I'm... I'm..."
Nani strained her ears as she heard Jumba whisper something to Pleakley.
"Well, I wouldn't say 'hideous'."
The floorboards shook as Jumba stomped on one of Pleakley's three feet. But while Nani smirked at the small act of comeuppance, she soon tripped over an unseen object while stepping back from the trapdoor. She yelped as she landed facefirst in a large pile of rolled-up socks, causing three pairs to end up jammed into Nani's mouth. Lifting herself onto her knees, Nani wrestled her jaws to push the socks out of her mouth, but it was clear they wouldn't budge. Nani mumbled curses behind her packed mouth before she lifted her head to the floor above her.
"Hhhhlllpp!!" Nani screamed as loudly as she could behind her makeshift gag. But the others in the living room were too engrossed in conversation to notice her.
"So, you extend my membership in E.G.O.?" Jumba eagerly asked Mortlegax.
"Perhaps... But first, I really should see some of your other experiments at work on the island."
"Fortunately, thanks to evil genius hacking of secret spy satellites, cable provider, and neighbor's wireless network, Jumba has multi-camera recordings of experiments in action!"
Nani shook her head exasperatedly as the living room became filled with the audio of videos from Lilo and Stitch's past encounters with Jumba's experiments. Growling behind her sock-crammed jaws, Nani wrestled to free herself from her bindings and give Jumba a piece of her mind, all concerns about his reputation and membership at E.G.O. completely gone. She paced around the basement in search of any sharp tools or long objects that could help her break out of the rubber cement-like adhesive that encased her upper body. She tried wedging a closed umbrella between her bindings, only for it to pop open and send her falling flat on her back. She then rubbed her slimy bindings against the edge of an old coffee table, only for it to produce no results. Huffing through her nose, Nani began stomping her way up the stairs to the trapdoor, when she heard Mortlegax's disgusted voice.
"Well, Jumba! I think it's clear that you do not belong in the Evil Geniuses Organization! Good day!"
"Maybe we should start our own club," Lilo then suggested.
Nani sat down on one of the stairs and started kicking at the trapdoor. After three good kicks, Jumba swung the door open. The massive alien shrunk back at Nani's heated gaze.
"Uh, heh heh... So, bad news... My membership to E.G.O. has been revoked," Jumba bemoaned.
"Yhh dhnt shhy?" Nani raised an unimpressed brow at him.
Lilo hurried over and yanked the socks out of Nani's mouth as she spit out any stray fabric strands.
"Sorry about that, Nani," Lilo apologized.
"Look on the bright side! I think you did a decent acting job!" Pleakley offered.
Nani slowly turned to stare at Pleakley, who quickly pulled off his wig and hid it behind his back. She then whipped her head to face Jumba.
"Give me one - one - good reason why I shouldn't let Bubbles know you've been hacking into top-secret satellites, or our neighbor's WiFi."
Jumba stuttered for a convincing answer, but Lilo protectively stepped in front of him. "They'll help us clean!"
"A-Absolutely!" Pleakley picked up a nearby dustpan.
Jumba nodded. "Is least we can do for all the stress, I suppose."
Nani sagged her shoulders. "...It's a bummer about your membership, though."
Jumba waved it off. "Easy come, easy go, as you Earthlings say."
"Don't worry, Jumba. Like I said, we can set up our own club." Lilo comforted him.
"Oh, no! This place already looks like a Frankenstein's lab! We're not doing any more redecorating!" Nani protested.
"No crazy decorations, promise! It'll be completely low-key," Lilo quickly replied. "Plus, there'll be strawberry pie."
Nani's next protest died on her lips before she frowned. "How dare you use my favorite dessert against me?"
"Is it working?"
Nani groaned. "Somebody get me out of this stuff and get rid of all the spooky doodads." She darted her head again at Pleakley. "And maybe, I'll forget about asking where you got that wig."
Pleakley giggled fearfully as he helped Lilo and Jumba pack up all the laboratory props, while Stitch used his claws to cut through Nani's bindings like butter.
Not for the first time, Nani wondered how her life had become so chaotic.

--Consider this an extended scene from "Ace", the twenty-third episode from the second season of Lilo & Stitch: The Series.
--Nani is a pretty underrated character in the franchise, and a fairly underrated damsel too.