Disclaimer: I only own Jimmy, Sergeant Williams, Judge Forhowser, Rachel, and Cassy. Also "mi hijo" is Spanish for "my son".

Tickles Aren't Scary After All

Jimmy looked around after coming out of the school and was relieved that he didn't see his aunt's car in the driveway. He then looked to see that no one was watching and ran away.

The reason the six-year-old boy was running away from the school in hopes his aunt wouldn't find him was because his aunt was a crazy woman who thought tickling little boys for a long time was the best thing. But the problem was, she would keep tickling them until she decided it was time to stop and Jimmy hated the feeling of his throat hurting and his lungs aching. It wasn't fun when he was left in pain.

He now turned the corner and saw one of the neighborhood boys coming toward him. "Hey, shrimp," he said nastily, grabbing the boy by the back of his shirt. "Come on. It's time to play 'See If You Can Survive In The Haunted House' game."

Jimmy was terrified. He had heard stories in school about the huge mansion and how it was said to be haunted and no one dared to go in there. He tried to struggle, but the bully was too strong and hoisted him into an open window of the Mansion, throwing him inside before closing the window and running off.

Leaving the young boy alone in the Mansion.

Jimmy looked around and saw the room he was in was actually welcoming. "This doesn't look haunted," he said aloud.

"Hey! How'd you get in here?" asked a rough voice.

Jimmy turned around and yelped when he saw a huge yellow gorilla behind him, looking at him with a stern gaze. He backed away.

"Who is that?" asked another voice and the boy looked to see a huge turtle behind him and he let out a squeak of fear.

"S-stay back," Jimmy whimpered as they came closer and cornered him as he curled up in a ball. "Don't tickle me!"

The strange request made Shocksquatch and Terraspin stop in their tracks. Why was the boy saying that?

"Guys? What happened?" asked Rachel as she came in and saw the terrified boy cowering in front of her friends. "Hello."

Hearing that, Jimmy looked up to see a kind-faced lady looking down at him. "How did you get in here?" she asked him.

The boy sat up. "That bully threw me in the window," he said, pointing to the window behind him. The turtle looked at the window and saw it was closed a bit, like someone had closed it from the outside. Jimmy looked at Rachel. "You're not going to tickle me, are you?" he asked fearfully.

"Why are you afraid of tickles?" she asked curiously.

The boy looked afraid. "My aunt tickles me and she doesn't stop until I'm hurting," he said.

Rachel picked up the boy and cradled him in her arms. "It's okay," she said to him. "Don't be afraid. The aliens won't hurt you."

Jimmy looked at the two present aliens who gave him friendly smiles and gently patted his head. "Tickles are supposed to be painless," said the turtle alien.

"Yeah, but some people take it too far," said Shocksquatch.

"Take what too far?"

All four turned to see Cassy standing there with Chromastone beside her. They caught sight of the boy. "What happened?" asked the Crystalsapien.

"Bullies," said Rachel. "And an abusive aunt."

"Oh," Cassy cooed in sympathy as she came closer and took the boy in her arms, rocking him. "You'll be safe here, mi hijo."

Jimmy didn't know what she had called him, but he liked it and hugged her, feeling safe as Cassy carried him upstairs with Chromastone behind her as Rachel called the police and settled those matters that needed tending to.

Cassy and Chromastone looked at each other, each knowing what the other was thinking. The boy needed a good home with people who wouldn't hurt him or abuse him. Cassy gave the Crystalsapien a pleading look and he nodded.

"What's your name?" she asked the boy.

"Jimmy," he said.

"Well, Jimmy, you're going to stay with us for a bit and I believe we can make arrangements for you to stay permanently."

The boy looked up. "You mean, I won't have to go back to my aunt?" he asked her.

"That's right," said Chromastone, ruffling the boy's hair affectionately.

Jimmy then looked at them. "Why haven't you guys tickled me yet?" he asked.

"Well, you sounded terrified when Shocksquatch and Terraspin had you cornered," said Cassy gently.

"But besides the fact that tickles aren't supposed to hurt, we know that you don't like them. So we haven't done so as we don't want you to feel afraid of us," said Chromastone.

"Do you guys do tickling?" asked Jimmy.

"Chromastone does," said Cassy.

"Does it hurt?"

"Nope."

The boy gave it some thought. "Can you show me?" he asked them.

Chromastone looked a bit unsure. "Are you sure, Jimmy?" he asked. The boy nodded. "Okay then."

The next fifteen minutes was spend with both Chromastone and Cassy tickling the boy, who laughed and didn't mind the tickles as he saw that they weren't hurting at all, but were fun.

After a bit, they all stopped and Rachel came up, handing her guardian some papers that he and Cassy looked over and signed. Rachel smiled. "It's official, Jimmy is now your son," she said.

Jimmy looked at them. "I'm…you adopted me?" he asked them.

"Yes," said Chromastone before he looked at Rachel. "How did you know we were going to adopt him, Rachel?" he asked his charge.

"I saw it in Cassy's face when she saw Jimmy the first time. It didn't take me long to put it together and thankfully, our good friends Sergeant Williams and Judge Forhowser are here. So, I'll give them the paperwork and it's good to go," said Rachel and she turned to Jimmy. "Welcome to the family, Jimmy," she said to him with a smile.

The little boy got up and hugged Rachel, who picked him up and hugged him back. "Thank you, Aunty Rachel," he said, snuggling into her hug.

She was a bit surprised, but happy that Jimmy trusted her enough to call her his aunt. "You're welcome, little buckaroo," she said.

That evening, after dinner, Jimmy settled down in his new mother's lap and hugged her. "I love you, Mommy," he said, meaning it.

Cassy hugged her new son with motherly affection. "I love you too, mi hijo," she said, hugging him as she felt Chromastone hug them both. Jimmy turned to his father and hugged him, not minding that his father was a crystal alien as he felt him return the affectionate hug.

"Love you, Daddy," he said.

Chromastone chuckled. "I love you too, my son," he said to him. "No one will hurt you again."

Jimmy lay his head on Chromastone's shoulder and feel asleep, knowing his new father spoke the truth.

And tickles weren't scary after all too. They were fun, especially with his new family.

I couldn't get this out of my mind when I thought about it, so here it is.

Please leave a review, but no flames!

GoldGuardian2418