Like all days in Townsville, it began as a simple morning.
The girls, now having grown into fine young women, had woken up early, had their breakfast and changed out of their pajamas and into the typical weekend attire of young women the world over: tight jeans and shirts fitted to attract attention, exposing shoulders and midriffs to appreciating eyes; the only pair who did not appreicate the sight of the girls turned young women were the Professor and the Mayor; in their eyes, the three would forever remain as little girls.
Going head-to-head with criminals and monsters was one thing, but attracting the attention of young men was another beast entirely.
They had been flying together as they did most mornings, though eventually they would each branch off to their own destinations. Buttrcup to her job as a self-defense instructor, Blossom to her internship at the Mayor's office, and Bubbles to her morning art class at the Townsville Uniersity.
As they had passed over the park, it had been Buttercup who happened to glance down and then called their attention, pointing to the field far below. "Whoa! Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
Bubbles turned around and followed her sister's gaze. She gasped and felt her stomach drop. "I don't believe it! He hasn't been seen in years."
For her part, Blossom narrowed her eyes at the solitary figure below and asked, "Is it just me or does he look…lost?"
"Lost? No way, he must be waiting for the right time to attack or something." Buttercup said.
Without waiting to debate who would be the one to approach the curious figure, Bubbles swept down to the park. She hovered above him for several moments, using her heightened senses to determine whether or not who she was looking at really was…Him.
Him, the most powerful foe she and her sisters had ever known, for he was unique among all their enemies. He had no greed for money or the petty respect commanded by Townsville's homegrown thieves and criminals. No, Him had been different from the start, from his motivations to his methods and his manners.
For years, it had seemed that the only thing he wanted was to toy with them. Mind games to make them turn on each other or he would cast a spell to fill their loved ones with rage; he would play their greatest fears against them in their nightmares or, as he had in one very special adventure - he had tortured them with riddles, implying that their father's life hung in the balance. It had turned out to be a ruse, a damn wager for a free breakfast. Him was unpredictable, as deceptive as he was dangerous and without question, their most powerful and playfully vindictive enemy.
He had disappeared years before, and his emotional torments had not been missed.
Now, though, it seemed that he had come back. Bubbles drifted in a wide, slow circle high above Him, looking for some sign, even a small clue that this was an imposter. She cursed when she could find no such indication. This figure looked enough like the creature she remembered. Tall with a wiry build, each muscular arm ending in long hooked claws rather than the hands of a man. He had a head of jet-black hair, a sharp, angular face, and the eyes of a dragon – golden, calculating, eternally amused.
His expression was blank, absent his joker's smile, but it was Him. She was sure of it now.
Taking a deep breath to steel her nerves, Bubbles landed beside the demon, watching as he stood staring into space, unblinking and immobile. After a moment, she cleared her throat, but he did not react to the sound. She furrowed her brow, wondering what was wrong with him; Him was inhuman, true, but this...emptiness in his eyes and expression, it was unnatural.
Glancing up, she saw her sisters moving into position if he made a move to attack her. Hesitantly, she reached out and tapped his shoulder. "Excuse me, Him?"
At being touched, he turned around to find a pretty, petite girl standing at his side, her curling hair tied in low pigtails, her expression expectant as she looked up at him.
He blinked at her. "Yes?"
She suppressed the urge to shudder at the sound of his voice; the years had done nothing to dull its otherworldly echo.
"May I ask what you're doing here?" Bubbles frowned at him, at the lack of recognition in his eyes as he met her gaze.
At her question, the creature seemed to consider his surroundings for the first time. He looked about the park, his eyes lighting on the lake, the Townsville skyline in the distance, the trees swaying in the breeze and the people at the edge of the field who were obviously trying to keep their distance from him.
Him lifted his claws, wincing as he tried to click them together. "…I...I don't remember…"
Buttercup landed lightly next to Bubbles, but her attention was on their confused enemy. "What? What do you mean, you don't remember?"
Him blinked, clearly unsure why there was another girl asking questions of him. He narrowed his eyes, trying to place this one. Her fierce expression was unfamiliar, though she was no less lovely than the first girl who had approached him.
Who were they? Why could they fly? And why did they seem so interested in him?
Him.
The demon ticked his head to the side, sure that he'd remembered something, but the thought was gone just as quickly as it had come.
"I don't know how I got here. Where am I?" He asked them, wondering if they knew where they were since they obviously seemed to recognize him.
To his surprise, yet another girl dropped down to land before him. He took a step back, wary now, and raised his eyes to the sky, looking for any remaining women in the air above him. Where did they keep coming from and why were they so concerned?
"He's got amnesia!" Blossom exclaimed to her sisters.
"How?" Bubbles asked.
Buttercup narrowed her eyes at the creature, who was still searching the sky for more incoming Powerpuffs. Now that she really focused on him, she noticed that he looked like he'd been roughed up; it was difficult to see the injuries at first due to his deep crimson skin, but they were there. There was a cut on his cheek, one of his eyes was bruised, he had scratches all over, and his clothing had seen much better days. Buttercup's eyes widened as she saw the most telling injuries of all, that both of his claws were harshly cracked, damaged to the point where he could not even align them correctly.
"He looks like he's been in a fight. Even we never caused that much damage, just look at his claws!" She said, pointing at him.
Bubbles brought her hands to her mouth as Him hissed when he tried to open one of his claws.
"I hurt all over." Him said, seeming to only just realize his injuries. His infantile statement sent an odd pang through Bubbles's heart; in a startling moment, she realized that she felt a bit of sympathy for the lost creature.
"What should we do?" She asked her sisters.
Blossom furrowed her brows, considering what, if anything, they should do with him. "Well, we can't just leave him out here like this." She glanced to the other people in the park, all of them interested in what was happening but clearly afraid of Him. "If anyone attacks him you know he'll fight back, and there's no telling what Him could do if he doesn't remember how to control his power."
"Good point, but what are we gonna do with him? Him can't stay in the park but it's not like there are kennels that take in the stray demons of Townsville either." Buttercup urged.
The demon perked up, finally understanding why their grammar seemed so disjointed. "Oh, you call me that because you don't know my real name. To you, my name is Him."
Blossom rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah, we know." She turned back to her sisters. "Look, maybe we should bring him home and have the Professor check him out, maybe he can help him to remember."
Buttercup's jaw dropped. "We can't invite that thing into our home!"
Blossom shrugged. "It's not like he hasn't been to the house before, he's even been in our dreams! What choice is there?"
Bubbles chimed in, but kept her voice low so that Him could not overhear her. "Well…if he doesn't remember us, or even himself very well, then he doesn't remember that he hates us…"
"So he might let us help him?"
An idea occurred to Bubbles, one that held immense appeal. "Even better, maybe he'll actually be good for once!"
Blossom considered, "Let's just hope we can convince Him to behave. I- hey, where'd he go?"
Buttercup turned around and found Him walking after a colorful butterfly, claws outstretched. "Jeez, look at him! It's like he's been turned into a toddler or something."
The girls walked after him, when Him suddenly lashed out with his arm, emitting a powerful blast of energy that thankfully missed the pretty insect but struck down a powerpole with frightening accuracy. For a moment the girls could only stare, and Him appeared just as surprised as they by what he'd done.
Blossom crossed her arms. "He's turned into a toddler demon, but a demon nonetheless. We've got to bring Him to the house before he wrecks the whole city."
Despite all doubts, her sisters could only agree.