Hey, peeps! I've been really gettin' into the KND fanfiction (especially 2/5), so I'm taking a crack at it. This one isn't too serious and it centers on the healing relationship/fluffiness of Numbuh 5 and 2. There is a hint of 3/4 in there if you squint. :D Have fun reading!
Disclaimer: Ha! You really think I own one of Cartoon Network's best cartoons? Wrong! I don't! Mr. Warburton does.
She looked at the mirror and frowned, her red hat bobbing along with her as she shook her head. The swollen black eye stuck out like a sore thumb on her face. Another close combat had left her with this as a memory to be more careful next time. Being Supreme Leader of the Kids Next Door was the last thing she expected Numbuh 362, bless her decommissioned soul, to choose her as. All these years of running away from the leadership positions must have finally caught up to her.
The operatives of the moon base had just achieved victory in the latest attack from adult tyranny. No serious injuries had been reported and it seemed like a good deal of the operatives had come out unscathed. Her and a few others, however, weren't as lucky. She held a mocha-colored hand up to caress the bruise, a small sigh escaping her lips. The frown on her face turned into a grim, straight, emotionless line as she heard a quiet knock on her personal quarters' door. Pulling her signature red hat down to hide both of her eyes, she strode to the large metal door and yanked it open. Anger burned inside her covered eyes. Everyone on the moon-base knew not to disturb the Supreme Leader after a battle.
When he saw her for the first time in almost a full year, he had to remind himself not to be so shocked. The Numbuh Five that stood before him looking so different than the one that stood before him so long ago. He caught a glimpse of the very edge of her hidden eyes. They were dark and contained signs of too much stress and worrying. Strange. Numbuh Five wasn't really the worrying type. The dark and scarred hands were balled into pale-knuckled fists. He knew his visit had surprised her because of the quick gasp that was emitted from her mouth before she looked up and down the hallway. She reached for his arm and violently pulled him into the room before sliding the soundproof metal door behind them.
He yelped before whirling around to look her in the eye only to realize that they were still hidden. Her face was slowly contorting into a slow frown as she looked him up and down.
"Hey, I can't look that bad", he said, trying to rid the air of the awkwardness that was gradually starting to grow.
The frown had once again transformed into an angry straight line. She shook her head as she took a menacing step forward towards him, the space between them small and insufficient. She looked at him from under the hat. He was right; he really didn't look half bad for someone who had endured the harsh training of his new assignment. Most of his baby fat has melted away due to the training requirements he must've had to complete. Being the leader of the Kids Next Door Aeronautics and Weaponry sector had to have come with plenty of requirements and merciless training. Not something someone like him would probably have done. But he had accepted the challenge anyway.
Ever since Numbuh Five had been chosen to take over for Numbuh 362, the Sector V couldn't stand anymore. They all split up, himself going to Everett, Washington where the sector is ran by hundreds of kids underground, right beneath Boeing Airplane Corporation's largest manufacturing center, also known as the largest building in the world. Numbuh Four had traveled to the Arctic Base in order to train incoming kids. He only accepted the job after being promised free flights to Japan, where Numbuh Three was training in Misty Youth Mountains in order to become a KND martial arts expert.
He began to twiddle his thumbs nervously as Numbuh 5 remained silent before him.
Everyone had moved on to start their own adventures, so why had Numbuh Two come to see her at this period in her life? The dolt hadn't even taken the time to video message her or show up at any of the major celebrations held on the moon base. He was always "too busy on the next advancement in KND technology" as some of the Sector A&W (Air and Weapon) operatives would tell her whenever she inquired. He had apparently made a name for himself, his face on many kid and science magazines across the world.
She was thankful for all the wonders that had started coming out for all the operatives to use in their missions ever since he took over, but really? Nothing for almost a year? Even Numbuh 4 and 3 would stop by ever once and while and update their statuses.
"You've lost your right to talk, Numbuh Two", she spat out coldly. "Or at least in this room anyway".
"What? But-" He started, his eyes widening. The only reason he had taken this trek to the moon-base was to talk to her.
"Eh!", she interrupted. Her eyes locked him in a secret glare. Who did he think he was? "Numbuh Five doesn't want to hear it", she continued.
Silence from him made her uneasy, not sure whether or not to be happy for his obedience, relieved, or even angrier. She gave up scanning him and snorted before asking him the question that had been on her mind ever since she had opened the door in the first place.
"What happened to you?" she asked softy.
He shrugged and looked away. A bit of auburn hair fell over his eyes as he blushed slightly.
"Just busy, I guess." he answered, figuring that his 'talking rights' has suddenly been restored. Had she been wondering about him the same way he had been wondering about her ever since the last time they had been able to have a decent exchanging of words? It had been a long time ago, in person, right before she was to become the Supreme leader and right after Numbuh 362 had been decommissioned and sent home to warm bed, finally at rest. Right before the invasion.
"Just…busy? Numbuh Two, what kinda' answer is that? You've gotta be kiddin' me!", she said, raising her hand to her forehead and beginning to run it through her hair, moving her forgotten hat along with it. The black eye came into view and he gasped while taking a step towards her with concern in his eyes. Realizing what she had done, she quickly turned and walked to the window, looking out to see a group of cadets being allowed to try out the zero-gravity and bumpy terrain of the moon's landscape. She held tightly to her hat as she looked through the thick glass, embarrassed at the careless mistake during combat that had left proof on her usually flawless face. She sensed him coming to stand a couple of feet behind her.
"Numbuh Five, you have to let me see…" he pleaded quietly, "You're hurt and I can help."
She shook her head slowly, not moving her eyes from the cadets below.
"Abby…" he tried again.
She quickly swiveled around, a long black braid whipping behind her. She gave him her most menacing look (which looked almost pathetic with the black and blue swelling).
"You've lost first-name basis rights as well…Hoagie".
He grinned at her with soft blue orbs and moved closer to her before using his skilled hands to examine the injury. 11 months of medical first-aid training and multiple real-life emergencies wasn't just for nothing. What had happened? He wasn't sure, nor did he think she was going to supply a good answer. He wasn't exactly letting her in on his life either.
At first she wanted to back away from his protective touch, even though it really wasn't that rare. It had happened plenty of times before, in the past, during missions with her old team. But this was now and this was different.
He closed the swollen eyelid with his thumb, the action almost like a silent command that said, "It's ok. Rest". She closed her uninjured eye and relaxed against his touch. Breathing in the familiar yet not familiar scent of an old friend, saw dust, and apple pie, she smiled. It was comforting. Even the silence between them wasn't awkward anymore.
She could hear him wrestling to pull something from the utility belt around his waist. Then she felt a wonderfully cool sensation on her face as he rubbed some sort of topical cream on her pain before pressing a compress against it. He moved to grab her own hand and guided it to the compress itself, his hand lingering on hers longer than necessary after she took hold of the cold bag and began applying pressure.
She eventually felt his hand leave hers and heard a soft thud from behind her, the sound prompting her to open her other eye and turn around. He looked so different. Maybe it was because it seemed like some of his goofiness had been stripped from him and replaced with a more leadership-like aura. He sure was bold for coming like this and was lucky that she hadn't pummeled him. He looked taller. The soft locks on his head were longer, now showing all the time, poking out from underneath his aviators cap and new yellow-tinted goggles, which looked more sleek and modern than the ones he had worn for so long. She wondered why his head wasn't shaved like most everyone else in at the A&W base.
There was one more thing that seemed different but she couldn't put her finger on it…
"Promise to get it checked by the medical staff?" he said to her from atop the windowsill.
She simply nodded as she watched him with wary eyes. Something was different all right…
He touched the side of the window with one finger and all of a sudden, a secret keypad was revealed. Abby had never noticed it before. Without looking, he entered a complicated code and something shifted. A glass wall was lowering from the ceiling, separating his side of the room from hers. As the wall continued to descend, he spoke.
"Abby, don't forget that the world doesn't always have to be on your shoulders".
She blinked and nodded. A small grin spread across her face.
Just before the wall cut off the room and sound completely, he mentioned one more thing.
"Oh and Supreme Commander, sir? We found his extra pair."
Numbuh Five looked at him with a cocked eyebrow when a goofy smirk was apparent on his face. She was confused. Whose extra pair? Extra pair of what? She ran to the glass wall and pressed up against it, trying to ask these questions, but she knew he couldn't hear her. He gave a small wave before pressing a large red button on the keypad before it, too, shut. With his other hand, he pressed a button on his chest to activate the s.p.a.c.e.w.a.l.k.e.r suit, a new slim space suit that worked much better than the traditional bulky ones.
The window behind him opened, but him nor the bits of furniture and papers on his side of the glass wall were sucked out. Instead, everything just sat there as usual.
Then she remembered.
Hoagie had been the one to redesign the moon-base in the first place. Hmmm. Simulated gravity in hostile environments, huh. Nice touch. She wondered how he had avoided her all those weeks spent during the reconstruction process of the moon base, why she hadn't caught even a glance of him but heard of him often enough. Numbuh 2 of Sector A&W winked at Supreme Leader Numbuh 5 before clicking his brown shoes twice and starting to fly, flames coming out the bottom of his shoes.
Oh, so that was what was different. They found a pair of Nigel's old shoes. She grinned as she walked over to the couch. The window had closed and the wall was currently retracting upwards. She sighed, remembering pleasant memories of their friend, Nigel Uno. Removing her hand from the glass, she went over to one of her room's drawers built within the walls and pulled out the sunglasses he had given her before his departure. She slid them on and made a mental note to see the nursing staff. She had promised.
Slumping against the back of the couch, she hoped Hoagie would visit again. Sometimes all she needed was to be reminded that the world didn't always have to be on her shoulders.
You guys like all the references I made! One to Greek mythology and one to Nigel Uno. Unlike most fics, I embraced the fact that Nigel is gone in this one. I know, I know, I'm evil! Any who, I hoped you liked this fluffy story. Heheh, sort of odd that Numbuh two knows the combination to Numbuh 5's bedroom window…
I LOVE REVIEWS!… just saying *wink*