A/N: Alright, I have some explaining to do, I get it. So here's the rundown:

I started this story years ago, but a correlation of procrastination, disinterest in Fanfiction, and life caught up with me at full force. Over the course of the last couple months, though, I realized that I have several projects that are incomplete but could be epic if I could just DO them, and while I started to work on them a weird... guilt came over me in knowing that I had started this and never finished it. This is my attempt at finishing it. To prove to myself and others that I can accomplish at least that.

And to practice my writing, cause that's cool too homie!

Anyway, I don't know how many of you reading this were with me when I originally posted it. If any of you are still here, I HEAVILY reworked the first two chapters. A lot longer, better, and won't stand out like a sore thumb so much when I update newer chapters.

Regardless, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Or... hey, don't enjoy it at all. I'm not going to tell you how to live your life.

Disclaimer: I own nothing! (This disclaimer goes for all chapters in this story)

While Mojo's Away...

Chapter One: Thanks, Mojo!

Mojo growled in annoyance as he sat in a Townsville jail cell, staring up at the stone ceiling and thinking about how his plan went wrong. He had double… triple… quadruple checked all calculations. Everything was correct and properly in place. His list of demands had been written up, proofread, and citrus-scented (as citrus is an evil scent compared to its almost evil, yet not quite there' counterpart lemon scent would be. Obviously). He had about a tenth of Townsville destroyed and under his control at the time of his defeat; so what happened to make everything go south so quickly?

He had been winning. Boasting and laughing manically as his giant robot crushed the buildings below him. Then a small tapping sound on the glass of his cockpit had caught his attention.

The three little superhero girls he despised: Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup, were staring back at him. He remembered grinning at the sight. It was only a matter of time before the girls showed up, and he was eager to try out his new weapons on them; confident in their success.

'You girls think you can defeat Mojo? Well, not this time! For I, MOOOOJOOO JOJO, will be the dominant victor. Yes, I, MOOOOJOOO Jojo! Shall show you three girls who is more superior!'

Of course, he had boasted. He had prepared after all. Citrus scent and everything.

But the glass to his newest robot had been soundproof. He remembered that now. So while he rambled on in the cockpit, the girls continued staring back in confusion.

The rest was a bit of a blur for Mojo, but it wasn't hard to put together the missing pieces. The girls had listened (or watched, really as he was behind a soundproof dome) for about five minutes before they had gotten bored. Then, before the hyper-intelligent chimp could complete his pre-victory laugh, he was already being thrown out of his robot, into a police van, and ultimately a jail cell—specifically the one he currently occupied. Mojo grabbed the sides of his bed and squeezed the uncomfortable mattress.

"Stupid Powerpuff Girls!" He grumbled. "They always ruin my plan! Next time, it will be different! For I, Mojo Jojo, will take over Townsville, and then, THE WORLD!" Mojo jumped up off his bed, arms outstretched towards the ceiling and laughed manically for a good two minutes before his neighboring cellmate told him to shut up. He scowled and sat back on his bed with his head in his paws.

Calculations, demands, citrus—not lemon—scent…

Why couldn't he stop going over this? He had a peculiar feeling he was forgetting something very important. Maybe it had nothing to do with his scheme. Maybe he left his oven on. Was he making biscuits this morning?

"Oh well," he mumbled to himself, deciding to lay down in an attempt at sleep. It couldn't have been that important if he didn't even remember what it was, right?

"MOJO!" Brick pounded on the observatory's massive steel door for what felt like the thousandth time. Behind him, Butch lay on his back, mindlessly staring up at the sky while Boomer doodled in the dirt with his finger.

"Maybe we can break in," Boomer suggested, glancing up at his red brother.

"Mojo made his house Powerpuff proof," Butch stated, gritting his teeth. He closed his eyes annoyed. "Which means it's Rowdyruff proof. We can't get in."

"How about we go back to HIM's?" Boomer stood up to stretch before he rubbed away his drawing with the toe of his sneaker. He chewed on his lip thoughtfully, throwing a glance behind him in the direction they had come from.

"The last time we went back to HIM's early he got mad at Mojo and they fought for three weeks." Brick's forehead rested on the door as he tried to think of what to do. His closed his eyes, jaw tightening in irritation as more scenarios ran through his head. It was just like Mojo to pull some stupid crap like this. The red Ruff didn't know why he thought this month might have been different.

"I doubt HIM is even home. Ain't he going on vacation or something?" Butch looked up at Brick from his position on the ground. "He was prattling on all month about visiting someplace or whatever. He practically shoved us out the door."

Brick's whole body shook with anger. He returned to pounding his fists into the steel, barely denting the door. "MOOOOOJOOOOO!"

"Forget it, dude; he's not gonna answer." Butch sat upright and rubbed his temples. "I don't know why the stupid monkey agrees to watch us when he's never freakin' home!"

"Maybe he went out?" Brick and Butch glared at Boomer. "What? He could've!"

"Thank you, Mr. Positive!" Butch muttered sarcastically and fell backward to lie down again. "This is so stupid! Where the heck are we gonna sleep?"

"I don't know, dude," Brick sighed and slid down the wall to sit. He buried his head in his knees as he silently thought of something to do. Mojo didn't forget about them, right? Sure, he was a scatterbrained, idiot, but he didn't just... forget, did he?

"We could try a hotel," Boomer suggested with a shy shrug.

"With what money, Boomer?" Butch snapped.

"We could break a window?"

"I could break your face."

"It was just a suggestion!"

"A stupid one!"

"Well, I don't hear you mentioning anything!"

"That's cause I'm trying to think of something that'll actually help!"

"And I'm not?"

"No."

"Yes, I am!"

"No, you ain't!"

"SHUT UP!" Brick shouted to quiet his bickering brothers, "Look, we've got time to think about this, right? It's not like we need a place to crash right now."

A loud crack of thunder erupted above them causing all three boys to jump. Their attention rose to the darkening evening sky, hoping they had all imagined the loud 'boom.' A lone raindrop dropped on the bridge of Butch's nose, causing the boy to blink and cross his eyes to watch it drip down his face.

"You were saying?" He mumbled. A second later, Townsville became a blur in a shower of rain.

"Under the observatory!" Brick panicked as he darted underneath Mojo's house; Boomer and Butch following his actions.

Almost instantly they sunk to their knees in mud.

"For real, dude?" Butch complained as he and his brothers crawled more inward in an attempt to find drier land.

"Ack! I lost my shoe!" Brick groaned. He hobbled on one foot and tried to spin around to look for it, but his supporting leg didn't turn with him in the mud. He quickly lost his balance and fell backward with a splash.

Boomer snickered, "Smooth."

Brick trembled in agitation but didn't say anything as he tried to correct himself back into a standing position. He twisted and pulled, but couldn't get out.

"Shoot! I'm—stuck!" He grumbled. Butch and Boomer laughed, but still sloshed over to him. They managed to succeed in up-righting their brother, but once Brick was standing, they both slipped and fell back into the mud themselves.

"AHHHH! That's cold!" Boomer squealed. Brick looked over his shoulder at his brothers.

"You gotta m-move slow." Teeth chattering, the red Ruff demonstrated. He finally found dry land and pulled himself out before he shifted to help Boomer as Butch had managed to climb out already. The green Ruff's shirt caught on an exposed screw by his shoulder as he tried to shimmy closer inward causing it to rip and cut him.

"OW! What the—?!" He grabbed at his shoulder and scowled at ruined fabric and blood. "Oh, p-perfect!"

"Yeah, cause it was fixable b-before!" Brick rolled his eyes, but added, "Watch out for screws, B-Boom. They're st-ticking out all over the place."

Boomer's arms wrapped around himself as he closed his eyes and shivered: his brothers doing the same. Their clothes were caked in mud and drenched from rainwater. They wore heavy on their tiny bodies.

"All our stuff is ruined-d-d," Butch motioned to their soaked bags they left on the doorstep. His brothers scowled in annoyance at the sight.

A breeze swept under their shelter causing them to tighten and coil in on themselves further. They listened to the heavy thumps of rain above them until lightning shot across the sky and lit up Townsville. The thunder that followed caused the three to jump, and Boomer squeaked slightly, moving closer to his brothers.

"Aw, you ain't scared of a little thunder, are ya, B-Boom?" Butch asked, grabbing his brother's shoulders and grinning mischievously. Boomer bit his lip.

"N-No…" he stuttered. Butch laughed.

"Haha! Siss-Sissy!"

"I'm not a sissy!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"GUYS!" Brick shouted, "Sh-SHUT UP! You're both sissies!" There was an awkward silence between the boys for a while, and all that could be heard was the patter of the rain and chattering of teeth.

"Am not…" Boomer muttered, breaking the silence. Butch punched Boomer who responded with an 'Ow' before smacking the green Ruff in the face. Brick growled and joined the two. It was hard fighting in the cramped space under the observatory, but they somehow managed to do it.

They were about to announce a winner when another 'boom' in the sky made all three boys jump and freeze in fear.

"You're afraid of the thunder too, Butch!" Boomer said, pushing the green Ruff off of him.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

BOOM!

The boys jumped again.

"Am not…" Butch stuttered. Boomer didn't respond.

There was a bit of silence as they shivered in the cold. Icy air continued to sweep under the building and nip at their bodies.

"Why is it so cold-d?" Boomer shivered. "We're on a f-freakin' volcano!"

"M-Mojo drained it, dummy." Butch's teeth clattered in his mouth. "W-We're gonna freeze to death."

"No, w-we won't!" Brick shouted, "Just get closer together. We'll keep — keep warmer that way."

Butch and Boomer looked at Brick with raised eyebrows.

"I t-think I'd rather f-freeze to death," Butch said. Another gust of wind brushed past them. All three boys squeezed their eyes shut in pain. Without another word, Boomer and Butch scooted over to their red brother. Their backs were facing each other, and their knees were pulled up to their chests as they shivered and tried to keep warm.

For about an hour, there was silence until a low growl from the blue Ruff caused the other two to look up curiously. Boomer grabbed his stomach.

"G-Guys, I'm hungry."

"M-Me too," Butch added. Brick's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Didn't you eat at HIM-M-M's?" They both shook their heads. The leader was surprised. He thought he was the only one who skipped out on dinner.

"I thought we'd eat here," Boomer said. His blond hair was plastered on the sides of his face from mud and grime. Brick frowned and looked at Butch. The green Ruff's jet-black hair was longer than Boomer's, but it too fell into his eyes and was matted down, save a few stray strands that remained spiked due to determined hair gel; however, it wasn't doing Butch any favors. His brothers looked terrible, and he groaned in frustration knowing he probably didn't look any better.

"I hate that stupid monkey," he muttered. Butch and Boomer nodded in agreement. They buried their heads in their knees. It was going to be a long night.