New year, more OK K.O. fluffiness for y'all!
Hope you all had a safe, fun, and great Christmas holiday! Before I can get into my first story of 2019, a little backstory to share with this particular story.
Back sometime in 2018, originally on my profile, this was going to be a story starring K.O., Enid, and Rad getting sick after losing a battle to the Flu and they get sick in the process. It was going to be a series of vignettes of the trio being treated by their respective families, but looking through my other K.O. stories, I got to thinking that I kinda have enough stories solely focused on the bodega trio, which lead me hoping to try and write a story starring one of the lesser-used characters of the show for once instead.
In came the idea to make this story solely star Punching Judy, with the concept of the story more-or-less based upon a throwaway joke used in the show's first episode. K.O. and Carol still will play a good-sized supporting role in the plot, acting as a sort-of secondary family for Judy in this story.
I apologize for any delay or confusion with this story, as I was hoping to write for someone new for a change. In the end, I hope you all enjoy the story regardless!
OK K.O Let's Be Heroes is owned by Ian Jones-Quartey and Cartoon Network. (I don't own any of its characters nor its properties. This is purely a non-profit fanfic made for fun.)
LET'S FIGHT THE FLU!
"Thank you for shopping at Gar's Bodega. Have a punch-tastic day."
"Thank...ah-AH-CHOO! *sniffle*...you…"
As the purple-haired cashier handed the bag of items in the green-haired, leotard-donning boxer girl's boxing-gloved hands, the sickly customer sniffled pathetically once more before she slogged her way out of the bodega and into the warm summer atmosphere outside.
Today hadn't been a great day for Punching Judy at all. She had just gotten into a major tussle with one of her usual bad guys; a contagious, disgusting villain simply known as The Flu earlier this morning. It was a long, tiresome battle that ended badly for Judy, that while although she did still manage to defeat The Flu, she still got infected by one of his snot ball barrages, causing the boxer to slowly become sicker and sicker by the minute from his sickening attacks.
Of course, this was luckily a regular cold that simply comes-and-goes, but with the high temperature coupled with a blazing summer sun outside today, it certainly wasn't doing any good favors for poor Punching Judy as she trudged through the plaza in hopes to return back home to rest.
Unfortunately, the heat was making her weaker than she already was, causing Judy to feel woozy and exhausted.
"Must...make it home...I gotta...ugh...ohhh…" she panted, her forehead reddening from the summer heat.
Punching Judy lived by herself in a small single-floor house close by to Lakewood Estates, a small community area that was a few miles away from the plaza, and while it wasn't necessarily a far walk per se, it was still a chore for her to walk so far with her increasing sickness, especially in such a warm environment.
She was only a few feet away from the Fitness Dojo until Judy couldn't feel the need to take another step as she kneeled down and clutched her nauseous stomach in pain. Her bag of chicken soup cans, cough drops, and other medicinal items fell to the ground as Judy groaned upsettingly, feeling ready to either vomit or faint on the spot.
Poor Punching Judy moaned weakly, scared of what may happen next. She hadn't the strength to get back up on her feet, and she was too sickly to call for help, making only pathetic-sounding whimpers and groans instead.
Judy felt like she was soon ready to go towards the Great Cornfield in the Sky until, through her hazy, lethargic mind, she heard a frantic, concerned, and familiar-sounding voice ring out from across the Fitness Dojo.
"Oh, my gosh, Judy! Honey, are you okay!?"
Judy weakly turned her head at the sound of that female, worried tone, and through her blurry, dizzy vision, she spotted a figure with tall, blonde hair in a blue jumpsuit sprint up to her from her perch at the Dojo. Judy squinted her eyes to see the well-recognized woman kneel down before her, giving her such a concerned, almost-motherly look. By now, the young boxer girl could discern her savior somewhat more clearly.
"C-C-Carol?" groaned Punching Judy through her queasiness.
Carol frowned deeply in concern as she rubbed Judy's back as comfortably as she could. "Judy, sweetie, what on Earth happened? Are you okay?" she gasped dreadfully.
Judy managed to thickly swallow some incoming bile that was ready to force itself out of her sore throat, which stung while doing so, causing the boxer teen to wince and writhe in pain before speaking.
"I…*sniffle*...er...lost a battle against the…*cough*...ugh...the Flu...and now I'm...I'm...ah-ah-ah…" Punching Judy paused before she finally let out another loud, unexpected sneeze. "Ah-ah-AH-CHOO! Ugh...sick…"
Carol watched sympathetically as Judy groaned and exhaled through her stuffy nose. She reached into one of her pockets and gave Judy a handkerchief, which she gratefully accepted to blow her nose in.
"Judy, hon, you really shouldn't have gone out while you're so unwell…" Carol reminded gently, "It's way too hot out to go around while all sick like this…" Despite there was no sarcasm or annoyance hinted in Carol's tone, Judy could help but to still feel so upset for her actions.
"I..I'm really s-sorry, Carol…" uttered Punching Judy lowly, her clogged nose making her sad words sound so stuffy and pathetic, "I really was meaning to head straight…*sniffle*...back home, but...but...oh…"
Punching Judy was absolutely too winded to continue on with her explanation, so much so that she only finished her statement with another pained groan after another spike of discomfort rose from her stomach. However, Carol had the patience of a saint and simply rubbed Judy's back in hopes to ease her nerves and pain.
It was then when Carol struck an idea. She knew that Judy lived by herself and didn't really have anyone to help take care of her in this time of need, so logically, she genuinely wanted to help Judy out with her plight.
It was the least she could do after Punching Judy had also helped to take care of her own son in return.
She rubbed Judy's shoulder gently and gave her an innocent, but motherly look into the boxer's watery, hazy eyes, giving her her kindly offer.
"Judy, if it's okay with you, I can happily bring ya to my house and you can rest up your cold there?" smiled Carol sweetly.
Judy wasn't sure if her sickness was really messing with her, cause as soon as that innocent offer escaped Carol's lips, the poor boxer nearly keeled over in shock. Did one of the people that she usually does babysitting for actually offer to let her stay at her own home while she was this sick? She wiped her brow as gazed up at the smiling mother with misty, baffled eyes.
"Y-You...want me to...stay at your house?" asked out Judy from her surprised, sick stupor. Carol smiled warmly and nodded back.
"Well, yeah! I mean, you need someone to help take care of ya, and plus, you are too sick to walk all the way back home!" explained Carol. As much as Judy hated to admit it, but Carol did have a point. After moving out of her parent's house to live in Lakewood, she did wind up living by herself for a while. Not that she was having any problems with that, but in times like this where she was terribly sick, she could use a bit of help while she was feeling like this.
All Punching Judy did was sniffle weakly and look down on the pavement, giving Carol an embarrassed frown. "I suppose you're right…" she admitted, her voice all scratchy and croaky from her sore throat.
Carol smirked lightly and nodded before helping Judy back onto her feet, which proved to be a tad hard when Judy's knees nearly buckled from weakness. She then led Judy to her station wagon / battle tank and helped her lie down on the back seat.
"Just stay put, hon, I'm gonna text my son so that he'll get his friend to give him a ride home later today after his shift!" assured Carol. Judy weakly gave her a thumbs-up and a loud cough, prompting Carol to worriedly nod back and commence to text K.O. on her smartphone.
Soon, with Judy stirring and groaning softly in the back seat, Carol finished her text and immediately hopped in the driver's seat. Starting up the vehicle, she drove out of the Lakewood Plaza parking lot and soon travelled down the road leading towards the small community Lakewood Estates.
Ten minutes passed by when Carol had drove back to her own quaint little home in the Estates area, with a sickly Punching Judy still lying down in the back seat. Parking the sedan, Carol then helped Judy inside and immediately led her to the couch / bunk bed in the living area, letting the boxer girl rest in ease as the former P.O.I.N.T. hero retrieved a few items for Judy to use, such as a warm blanket, some tissues and cough drops, and an ice bag to put on her forehead.
With the blanket now draped around her body, Judy exhaled softly, trying her best to relax herself on the surprisingly comfy couch. She looked over to see Carol sifting through the kitchen pantry and cabinets, retrieving what appeared to be ingredients for something as she also brought out a big pot, filled it with water, and set it to a boil on the stove.
Carol then proceeded to add some of the ingredients, being bits of chicken, carrots, celery, onion, and other slivers of vegetables, into the pot and stirred them carefully. Judy looked on in worry and shifted uncomfortably, knowing what Carol was fully doing after noticing that the cans of soup Judy bought at the plaza had gone untouched in her bag on the kitchen countertop.
"C-Carol, you really don't need to d-do that! I-I already bought s-soup myself!" shivered Judy guiltily.
Carol simply cackled warmly at Judy's exclamation. "HA! Please! Everyone knows that homemade chicken soup helps cure a cold better, not some silly, condensed junk in a can!" she proclaimed in a self-assured, yet motherly vibrato, "Not to worry, hon. This soup'll warm you up as soon as you taste it, trust me!"
In spite of Carol's motherly assurance, Judy still felt guilt-ridden for having Carol go through so much trouble for her, even if she was as sick as a dog.
Twenty minutes passed on as Carol was soon ready to put the finishing touches on the soup, adding some fresh parsley and basil into the steaming pot of chicken soup, the aroma of the raw and natural concoction of broth, chicken, and veggies filling the entire home with such a fresh, delicious smell. Even from the couch, Judy felt her taste buds tingle from just smelling such a lovingly-crafted meal, a hungry and dreamy smile plastered on her pale face.
However, before she could hope to taste her nearly-finished meal, the front door opened to reveal the home's other occupant come inside with a smile on his face.
"Hi, Mommy! I'm home!"
Carol beamed brightly and poked her head from the kitchen, seeing her sprightly son waltzed into the home after a hard day's work at Gar's Bodega. "Hiya, sweetie! How was work?"
"Great, Mom!" chirped K.O., "We managed to stop Darrell, Raymond, and Shannon from attacking the plaza again today!"
Carol chuckled proudly. "That's my boy! Sorry to have Rad drop ya off, peanut, but we kinda have a guest joining us tonight!"
K.O. raised an eyebrow upon hearing that bit of news, but his confusion turned into delightful surprise as he finally caught sight of their unwell guest lying on their couch.
"Punching Judy!" squealed K.O. in joy. Judy smiled weakly in return and waved a friendly gloved hand at him. Even during such a bad cold, Judy still couldn't help but to smile at the little, optimistic hero-in-training she used to babysit for so long.
"Heya, kiddo! What's…*cough*...up?" croaked out Judy through her stuffiness. Before K.O. could run up and give Judy a hug, the sound of her unusually scratchy, raspy voice was enough for K.O. to grow more and more worried for his babysitter.
"J-Judy? Are you okay?" he asked gently. Carol then came out of the kitchen and when up to her son, playfully ruffling his hair.
"Judy kinda went down with a bad cold, sweetie, so we're gonna be helping her back on her feet again!" explained Carol, assuring her son as carefully as she can. K.O., however, still seemed a tad concerned.
"Will she be okay, though?" he asked back, looking at the ill girl upon their couch. Carol smiled and pulled K.O. into a side hug.
"Of course she will!" chirped Carol confidently, "She just needs a bit of rest for a while is all!" K.O. still seemed a tad worried regardless.
"I-Is there anything I can do to help?" he offered innocently. Carol beamed brightly.
"You can keep her company for the time being while I finish up this soup." replied Carol with a nod. K.O.'s signature smile returned with full force as he gave his mother a hearty, eager salute.
"You got it, Mommy!" he declared, prompting a giggle from both Carol and even Judy. Soon, K.O. immediately slunk up next to the couch, sitting close by to Judy but not close enough to catch her cold as Carol walked back into the kitchen area and continued fixing up their soup.
K.O., naturally, was already eager to help Judy out post-haste. He grabbed a small stool, plopped it next to the couch, and took his perch there, expectedly waiting for Judy to give out any orders she may have. However, as cute as Judy thought this looked, she was a bit confused and nervous from K.O.'s excitement.
"K.O., I appreciate that you…*sniffle*...wanna help…*cough*...but I don't think this may be all necessary...I'm only sick, is all!" Judy reasoned carefully through another bout of sniffles and coughs. K.O. simply smiled back and waved off her confusion.
"Pssh, nonsense! A great hero always puts others before his or herself!" proclaimed K.O. heroically. Judy couldn't suppress an amused smirk from her face. K.O. certainly was the kind of kid to take his duties as a hero-in-training quite seriously. Plus, with her throat kinda scratchy and sore, she could go for something to drink while her soup was being prepped.
"Well…" sighed out Judy, knowing she really didn't have much of a choice here, "I could, ahem, go for a glass of water, if that's okay?"
And just like that, K.O. sprang from his seat and followed through with his task. "You got it!" he announced proudly, swiftly grabbing a clean glass, filling it with freshly, filtered water, and bringing it back to Judy in ten seconds flat.
Judy sat there agape at K.O.'s quickness and eagerness, but didn't say a word as she graciously took the glass and drank up its contents in no time. She cleared her throat and handed back the empty glass to her little helper.
"Ahem, er, thanks, kiddo!" thanked Judy, despite her throat still feeling a tad sore. K.O. beamed back.
"No prob, Judy!" he chirped, "That's what friends do!"
"Well, then...uh…" Judy hummed out, "How're things at the plaza?"
"Oh, things are awesome, Judy!" squeaked K.O. in excitement, "Just me, Enid, and Rad helpin' customers and kickin' robot butt all day! It's a blasty-blast!"
Judy giggled softly. "I can tell. You…*sniffle*...certainly are growing up to be quite a good fighter, K.O.." she complimented. K.O. blushed softly.
"Gee, you really think so?" he asked shyly. Judy nodded in agreement, stifling back an incoming cough in the process.
"Absol…*cough*...uletly…" she wheezed out, her sincerity even being clearly shown in spite of her sickness. "But, ahem, anyways, how did that fight with those BoxMore guys go?" K.O. smiled and reared himself for quite a long story.
"Well, it all started this morning when Rad was bragging to Enid about some stuff while she was sweeping the floors, and then, Pird came into the store asking for bubble gum, which nearly got Enid steamed, lemme tell you, so then-"
And as K.O. babbled on about his day with Punching Judy patiently and quietly listening on with a small smile on her face, Carol simply looked back at the two with a soft, motherly smile as she continued on with finishing up her soup.
Soon enough, as K.O. and Judy had finished their casual conversation, the soup was finally ready! While Carol poured some bowls of fresh, steaming hot chicken soup, K.O. helped set up a small fold-out table to place in front of the couch for them to have their meal on as Carol served one soup for Punching Judy to help cure her sickness and two bowls for herself and K.O. to also have for dinner.
The trio were now contently enjoying their meal on the couch, watching Channel 52's Action News on the television...or in Judy's case, trying to enjoy her meal as her bulky boxing gloves were making it a bit hard to get a good grip on her spoon. It wasn't until the tenth time she tried to finally taste the soup when the spoon slipped from her right glove and dipped into the soup bowl, sending small droplets of soup splashing onto her face.
"Dang it…" grumbled Judy stuffily, wiping away some soup residue off of her. K.O. noticed Judy's troubles from right next to her and soon decided to offer his assistance yet again.
"Would ya like some help, Punching Judy?" he asked kindly. Before Judy could say anything though, K.O. carefully reached for her spoon, scooped up some soup, and daintily raised it towards Judy's mouth.
Hunger was basically overthrowing her humility at this point, so Judy decided it best to just swallow her pride as K.O. gingerly spoon-fed her her own soup. Instantly, the combined flavors of savory chicken, fresh vegetables, and a hearty broth filled Judy with such warmth that it helped to ease her upset stomach almost immediately!
After being served a few spoonfuls of soup, Punching Judy just couldn't contain her admiration for Carol's cooking skills. "Mmmm, Carol, this soup is delicious!" praised Judy with a genuine, though still stuffy-nosed tone. Carol chuckled warmly as she too ate up her own meal.
"Heh-heh, told ya, hon! This recipe's been handed down through our family's generation since 195X!" chortled Carol good-heartedly. The three shared a laugh as they continued on with their dinner, with Judy gratefully accepting each spoonful of soup K.O. served her.
A few minutes later, dinner was all finished and Judy was back to lying on the couch, with K.O. sitting by her side in case she needed anything else and with Carol cleaning up dishes in the kitchen. Judy's stomach had settled greatly thanks to Carol's soup, and was now contently laying down on her spot of the couch, snuggled up tightly and warmly.
However, some unsure thoughts still seemed to race through her mind. Since she's had this blasted cold, Carol and her son have been bending their backs over to make sure she would feel better, and while Judy was massively grateful for their loyalty and compassion, she still felt she didn't really deserve it that much. Sure, she may have been really ill, but regardless, she wasn't sure if all this trouble was necessary.
Her glumness, however, didn't go unnoticed as K.O. carefully rubbed her arm comfortingly. "Judy, are you okay? Can I get ya somethin'?" he asked gently. Judy looked over to the youngster and frowned softly in uncertainty.
"N-No, no thanks, K.O.. I-I'm good…" Judy tried to assure, but even through her clogged nose, K.O. could still sense sadness within her tone.
"Are you sure?" cooed K.O. caringly, "I can get you something, if ya want? Tissues, handkerchiefs, cough drops, you name it…"
Punching Judy didn't answer this time, she simply looked down at her body, her face twisting with guilt and mild unsureness. K.O. frowned worriedly at this reaction, so much so that even Carol noticed this display from the kitchen and immediately went over to the group, sitting on one end of the couch across from Judy.
"Judy, you doing alright, hon?" ventured Carol, giving her blanket-covered leg a soft pat. Judy looked away from the two and pursed her lips in uncertainty, giving off a few minutes of worrisome silence before she finally spoke what was on her mind.
"Well...it's just that...all this stuff you guys have been doing for me…" she began, pausing to sniffle back in some lingering snot in her blocked nose. Carol and K.O. gave her their fullest attention, waiting expectedly for her next statement.
"It's just that…" continued Judy carefully, "I just don't think I deserve all this, is all…"
Carol raised an eyebrow and gave Judy quite a baffled look. "Hon, what do you mean by that?" she asked in surprise.
"Well...I mean, you guys went through so much trouble to…*cough*...try and make me feel better…" explained Judy, "You guys fed me, keep me warm, looked out for me. I just feel like I'm being a burden to you two…"
Both K.O. and Carol looked at each other with such quiet, concerning looks that it almost frightened Punching Judy, as if they were going to agree with her statement and were gonna kick her out of their house. However, before Judy could assume her predictions could be reality, she felt a kindly hand grab her gloved right hand and pat it gently. She turned to see K.O. gazing up at her with a small smile.
"Judy, you ain't being a burden to us! We love having you around!" confirmed K.O. in his boundlessly innocent, caring way. Carol shared his declaration with a motherly smile and a nod.
"K.O.'s right, Judy. You've always been there to take care of my son whenever I had to go out, and we always enjoys having your company." stated Carol genuinely, "Those days when I had you babysit K.O., he was always so excited to play with you!"
Judy's sadness and guilt slowly made way for surprise, looking at the two family members through her slightly-hazy eyes. She almost thought her cold was playing tricks on her again. "You guys really mean that?"
K.O. nodded happily in return. "Yep! Those times when we played 'superheroes' together when I was young, it was so fun and excited! I always find it fun to be with such an awesome hero like you, Punching Judy!"
Judy's eyes boggled out of their sockets. A faint, pink blush spread to her cheeks, bringing a bit of color to flourish across her pale, sickly face once again. "R-Really!?" she stammered out to K.O. in a surprised, but touched tone, "You think I'm an awesome hero?"
Carol was soon next to take the mantle. "We both do, Judy…" she answered with both her and K.O. nodding proudly, "You're always there to protect and take care of my sweet, little boy when needed…"
Then, in a softer voice, Carol then said this. "And well...I guess what we're saying is that...we consider you as part of our family…"
At that point, Judy's shock and blushing face increased by tenfold. She hadn't really thought of herself as a member of K.O.'s family before. True, she absolutely loved being with K.O. and his mom, but for them to see her as part of their own family? That almost sounded insane...and yet, it was also quite touching and reassuring to Judy as well.
She gently wiped away a tear with a boxing glove and gave them both a thankful, soft smile. "Wow...I...I never thought of it that way…" she admitted in a whisper, "...Th-Thanks, guys…"
The three of them had to suppress the urge to hug each other, out of fear of contracting Judy's sickness to each other, so all they did was give her kindly smiles and patted her shoulder gently.
"Anytime, Judy…" assured Carol softly, "You'll always be welcome in our family…"
Punching Judy's blush still spread across her cheeks, as well as a big and growing smile that plagued her face as well. However, before she could sing their praises anything further, Carol realized something important.
"Aw, dang it…" she grumbled to herself.
K.O. looked puzzled and worried. "What's wrong, Mommy?"
"I meant to pick up a ham yesterday at the supermarket for the weekend to make ham salad for Poker Night with the gals and I forgot to!" sighed Carol, getting up from the couch to quickly put on her coat from nearby, "K.O., could you stay here and watch Punching Judy for me? I should be back in ten minutes."
And as always, K.O. nodded and saluted to her once again. "Gotcha, Mommy!"
Carol proudly nodded back. "Judy, once I arrive back home, I'll run ya a bath to help soothe your sinuses, okay, dear?"
Judy's smile never left her face as she nodded back in affirmation. "Thank…*cough*...you…"
Carol smiled and nodded before she quickly stepped out of the house, leaving behind her trusty, reliable son to tend to their unwell houseguest. K.O. then turned towards Judy and gave her a friendly smile.
"So, while Mommy is out, Judy, is it okay if I can read to ya a story in the meantime?" he offered innocently. Judy smiled back, though she did give him a slightly weird look nonetheless.
"That's sweet of you to offer, K.O., but…*sniffle*...no offense, but your storybooks don't really suit somebody of my age…"
K.O. still kept his smile. "Don't worry about that, cause I know the perfect book to read to you, Judy!" he assured as he reached for a medium-sized book underneath a nearby nightstand, before proudly presenting it in front of Judy's face, who couldn't help but to smirk a bit upon seeing what the book actually was.
"Hmm...'World's Greatest Boxing Heroes and Villains of All Time', eh?"
K.O. nodded. "Yep! And besides, you've always read stories to me when I was sick to cheer me up, so I figured I could return the favor to you…"
Judy smirked lightly at K.O.'s weird, but amusing choice of reading material, but considering her own specific breed of hero and profession, she really couldn't complain as she gave K.O. the go-ahead for him to read away. Plus, she found that K.O.'s prowess and kindness to help cheer up was certainly enough to warm her heart up. That and it's not like she had anything else to do at the moment, anyways.
"Heh, sure, why not?" she offered kindly, figuring beggars can't be choosers. K.O. squealed excitedly and immediately ran to his seat next to the couch.
"Okay, then!" he squeaked, opening the book to a random chapter before beginning to read, "Hmm, let's see now...a-ha, this is a great chapter! Okay, Chapter Three…'In 198X, the WVBA World Championship Match had its share of high-acclaimed international fighters that night, ranging from Soda Popinski, Super Macho Man, Dragon Ch-'"
And as K.O. kept reading on, Punching Judy couldn't help but to smile wistfully as her mind seemed to drift on for a bit, thinking back to good times in the yesteryears. She certainly could remember all those times when she babysat K.O.; playing with him, comforting him, taking care of him...times that made her happy and thankful to be with such a sweet, joyful little boy.
Times that were enough for Punching Judy to consider K.O. as a little brother of sorts.
Although she hadn't babysat K.O. for some time now, she was still grateful to have a great ally in the form of K.O.. He was certainly growing into a brave and capable, but still sweet-hearted boy, and Judy couldn't have been any more prouder of him. And hopefully soon, when she finally has the time for babysitting K.O. again, she was hoping to make more fond memories of them being together yet again.
But still, for the time being, she was just thankful and content being with the two people that care enough about her to go out of their way to cure her from her cold. People that she would gladly refer to as "a second family"...
THE END
And so ends "Let's Fight the Flu!", everyone!
Major apologies for such a large gap b/w this fic and the K.O. Christmas story back in December, I guess I was more or less burned out after writing for so long. But still, I'm hoping to get back in the mojo again.
Next OK K.O. story should either come sometime this month or next month, depending on how busy I am with life or with my other stories. So, until then, hope all your Christmases were fun and especially merry and I'll see you all soon! :D
~Thunderbyrd