Disclaimer: I own the right to speak, to petition, and to poop in the privacy of my fenced backyard. But I do not own the right to call The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy mine.

A/N: I was desperately searching the recesses of my memory banks for the plot of this chapter, offering bribes to any brain cell that could point me in the right direction. All to no avail. And so I said "Screw it. I'll just wing it." And thus this was spawned:

"A whole day, huh?" Mandy asked. She pressed her finger to her bottom lip. "Now what can be done with a whole day?" She glanced at Junior, who seemed to be hiding an idea from her. "You got something to say?"

Junior shrugged. "We could always terrorize the neighboring city. Father taught me how to use my powers to extend the magnitude of my size and abilities. He told me not to use it against humans, but technically I am using it in the pursuit of a friend. Father always encouraged friendship." He tossed her a conspiring smile.

Mandy nodded, her blood pumping with the satisfaction of a well-played hand. "Sounds tempting, but I haven't the powers to join you."

Junior frowned his sympathies, then reversed it to determination. "Then that shall be our conquest. We shall find a way for you to gain powers. Then we shall terrorize as many civilizations as we desire."

Mandy nodded. "That's more like it. But how will I get these powers? Grim's not around to show me the way anymore." A flicker of sadness crossed her eyes, but she crushed it instantaneously.

Now Junior was stumped, for he hadn't needed to search for powers – he'd been born with them. He didn't know where to look, but he knew someone who did. "I know the place to start," he told her, "but I will have to change form before going there. You, however, should be fine." Junior curled into himself and dropped to the ground, writhing and shedding his white skin as the nergal covering underneath sprang forth. When he reemerged, he was taller, handsomer, and more deadly, a gleaming black figure in an otherwise bright clearing. He offered her his hand, his green slits of pupils staring down at her, taking in her surprised face with pleasure.

Mandy couldn't help but be impressed by how terrifying this side of Junior looked. With those long, slender tentacles pumping with electricity, he could do some serious damage. But admiration would have to wait until later; she had a mission to complete. Mandy pressed her hand into his, and a tremor coursed through her stomach as their skin touched, warmth meshed and sweat mingled. No, she scolded the naughty organ, No. We aren't going to act that way.

Junior was unaware of Mandy's inner struggles, for he had his own to deal with. Slight alarm heightened his senses as he felt every wrinkle and etch of her palm against the smooth, black skin of his. He discreetly wrapped his digits around her hand, relishing in the only warm part about this girl he wanted so badly. Want to know so badly, he corrected himself. "Mandy?" he asked, his voice several octaves higher than a question needed to be. He cleared his throat as she gave him her attention, "Are you ready to meet my father?"

Mandy nodded. "Take us there." Us, she lingered on the word.

Us, he repeated in his thoughts, her alluring voice echoing through his brain. "Right," he said, and with that, opened the portal to his home.

The trip to the belly of the earth was not as impressive to Mandy as many of the other trips she'd taken with Grim to various mythical places, but she particularly liked this one due mainly to her new travel-companion – the tall, dark, and handsome demon-spawn wound tightly around her stubby finger. They landed inside the red walls of a surprisingly cool hallway. "Mum, Dad, I'm home," Junior shouted out, neglecting to let go of Mandy's hand. He didn't forget; he just thought it would send the wrong message if he let go first. He would let Mandy dictate that action.

Mandy, too, neglected to release Junior's hand, though not for the same reason. She just liked the foreign feel of a warm, soft hand in hers. However, when the Nergal's shadow smothered the wall of the hallway, she did let go, for no other reason than she didn't want his commentary on the matter. Nergal smiled at the children in his home. "Ah, you brought a friend home. That's wonderful, my boy! Come in, come in. Please make yourself at home. My wife is in the kitchen making tea." He led the two teens into another, brighter room where a middle-age blonde woman was pouring a glass of tea for herself. She acknowledged the trio with a jerk of her head, then dove into her iced beverage.

"Dad, Mandy and I were talking today, and we were wondering how mortals achieve powers," Junior began straight away. He looked up at his father with innocent eyes. "Could you perhaps show us how? Mandy would not mind if you used her as an example."

Mandy affirmed the remark with a short nod. Nergal gazed at the two younglings, then smiled and boomed, "An excellent suggestion! Let us go straight to it, then. I keep my books in the study." He walked briskly out of the room, and they followed. He led them into a darker, colder room with mahogany panels and luscious, deep-red arm chairs. He gingerly pulled a thick book with a cracked, gray cover from the shelf and flipped expertly to the page of his choice. "Now, it is a very complex thing to give a mortal powers, but for my best friend Mandy, it is no trouble at all," Nergal grinned sincerely. He laid the book out on the table and place a long, black finger on the page for them to look. To Mandy, the ancient text looked like Greek, but Nergal would know what it said, and she trusted him not to be naïve enough to try to trick her. "The first thing we need are the ingredients: toad stool, dog saliva, hair from a pixie, and a jar of dirt."

"A jar of dirt should be easy," Junior declared.

"From Alaska," Nergal added.

Mandy narrowed her eyes at him. "Why Alaska? Why not the Underworld or an old witch's cottage or something? At least give us some adventure."

"But my dear child, Alaska is an adventure! The jar of dirt is most crucial in that you must carry it from Homer to Kodiak Island and get dirt from each place before bringing it back here. You might want to get that last, as it will take the most time and energy. But I will provide you with the jar. You just need to get the dirt. And I will provide you with money for the ferry tickets to get to the island. Now off with you! I will begin on the spell when you return with all the ingredients."

A/N: The next chapter will be longer, seeing as they will be going to Alaska, where misadventures run rampant. And don't worry – it won't take me four years to post the next chapter. Pinky swear.