~3~

'This…this is too weird.' Rachel thought to herself as her hands fiddled mindlessly with the beeping terminal switches before her. She didn't tamper with anything, she wasn't really required to. She just had too keep her eye on that small radar blinking quietly every few intervals. It was what she had been ordered to do. Her. Being ordered to do something. She never imagined that day would be upon her again. But her she was, whether she fully believed it or not. Though after the trails she had endured so far, she wasn't sure what to believe anymore.

Her hand flicked upwards to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear and she found herself turning her seat lightly to gaze upon the small area around her. She had left the moonbase not too long ago, and she was no longer in the massive lunar treehouse. No. Now Rachel, new not-Supreme Leader, was one of five passengers aboard the flying S.C.A.M.P.E.R of Sector Q. Her Sector Q.

It had been so much of a shock. She hadn't seen any of them in what seemed like a gazillion years. When she was reassigned to Covert Opts to gather intelligence on the new possible threat of Father at the time, she came to the conclusion that she wouldn't be seeing them again. And she was right. Or now light of current events, she was wrong. It was still way too confusing. But even so, once she had their names in her mind, she found that remembering her old teammates came quite easier then expected.

There in the chewed out lawn chair that had been refurbished into a captain's seat was the leader of Sector Q, Numbuh 361 himself. The pudgy African American boy was in a slightly relaxing position as he oversaw everything that went on around him, like any adequate sector leader. But seeing as they were all officially off duty tonight, he was more lax in all his actions. In fact, at the moment he had one leg hiked over the other while flipping through some superhero comic book. But Rachel remembered his secret obsession. Numbuh 361 was a sappy romantic at heart. He probably had the latest Rainbow Monkey Love Novel hidden behind the comic right now.

Looking past the leader, Rachel looked towards the front of the ship to see the almost pale skinned boy in a green jacket manning the wheel. It was Numbuh 359, the Diversionary Tactics Officer and the team's fill in pilot. Rachel remembered him mostly for his conflicting attitudes when it came to his ways. The kid was a careful pilot. Double checking to make sure they had enough fuel, and never doing anything risky when it wasn't needed. But when he was needed to create a distraction, he would take wing and go wild. His most basic strategy was just ramming into the enemy head on most of the time. And another interesting bit of information was his love of the Yipper series, his passion for the trading card franchise almost matching a certain Asian's obsession for stuffed dolls.

Shifting her attention to the side, the blonde studied the form of a tanned girl bobbing her head to her mp3 player. Numbuh 358 was of Spanish decent and served Sector Q as main time Nurse, part time Hand-to-Hand specialist. The purple sleeved girl thought it would be quite handy to know how defend yourself and patch up if things got out of hand. A bit of information that Rachel could never forget about was that 358 loved music. She had big dreams of becoming a professional singer. Too bad she was better at carrying a first aid kit then a tune, or maybe that was a good thing.

Lastly, Rachel memorized the other girl off to the side, writing away in a math workbook. The freckled platinum blonde, Numbuh 360 was one the biggest math whizzes she knew of, and was quite handy with 2x4 technology. Her fellow blonde could think up the correct measurements for plywood, and ration out even amounts of ammo no problem. The only quirk the girl had was that she wasn't too difficult to irritate and her voice dipped into the southern twang of her hometown when she was really ticked off.

Yes, even after all this time, Rachel still recalled her old team and some bits about them all. Fond times weren't too hard to think up, and it saddened her at how they seemed to just fall out of touch after she left for the Moonbase. Global Command had praised her with how much talent she had shown, even back in the academy. She never thought she would get so caught up in it and move forward nearly forgetting about the sector she came from. She had to be honest, she had really forgotten about them after she became Supreme Leader.

But now, she wasn't Supreme Leader anymore. Zero, she got tried of that sentence, but she now had to take that major piece of intel into account with everything she did now. It was part of the reason she allowed Numbuh 361 drag her back to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. It had all been one huge daze up until this point. The fact her old sector leader just walked up out of nowhere and all but ordered her to get her butt on the ship had stunned her. She didn't know why she didn't put up any real protest. She didn't even know why she was here. She was sure someone knew but that particular person was probably to busy enjoying his cookie break. Jerky angel.

Rachel let loose a huff of tense breath as she turned back to her screen. Numbuh 361 had told her to watch radar in case any adults tried to surprise them, just like she used to having been the Stealth Tactical Officer and all. But she hadn't been with Sector Q in ages, why now? Finally her curiosity became too much and she opened her mouth to speak, but then the S.C.A.M.P.E.R shook lightly effectively stopping her questions. The all of a sudden, Numbuh 359 dusted off his hands in pride as he turned to face them all.

"Ladies and germs, we have now reentered atmosphere, and will be home in a snap." The pilot chuckled as he held his palms up. "No applause is necessary."

"How convenient, I wasn't going to give ya any." Numbuh 360 uttered as she flipped through her workbook. "Now focus on getting us back to the home."

"We're all excited about Christmas too, Numbuh 360." Numbuh 361 spoke out as he lowered his comic. "Don't sweat about it too much."

"I don't see how she could. I bet the best thing she's looking forward to is a graphing calculator." The pilot snorted before grinning. "Now Yipper Special Tactics Four? THAT'S a gift worth drooling over! Man, I can't wait for tomorrow morning!"

"You sure you're on the right list this year?" Numbuh 361 asked with a bit of a teasing frown. "I wouldn't exactly call wrecking eleven ships on purpose, nice."

"It got the mission done, didn't it? I think I should get like, extra stuff for bringing the hurt on so many adult jerk-wads."

"~Ooooh!~" Numbuh 358 suddenly jumped up. The girl was apparently into the song she was listening to and held her small hot pink player to her lips like it was some sort of microphone. Everyone in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R was forced to cover their ears as the rocking girl screeched out. "~I'm your biggest fan! I'll follow you until you love me! Papa-Paparazzi!~"

"DANG IT!" 360 yelled out as she lost her concentration. Glaring at the still singing girl, she growled as she shook her fist violently. "HEY! Lady Blah Blah! Y'all better shut yer trap 'fore I come over there and poke yer face!"

"Qué?" Numbuh 358 questioned as she heard something other then the lyrics. She pulled one headphone out and looked around, and when she saw the growling Numbuh 360, she just waved it off. "Geez, girl. You really need to unwind and relax. Chill." Suddenly, she smirked as she switched to another song and song it out horribly as well. "~AND JUST DANCE!~"

The platinum blonde tossed aside her workbook as she kicked herself out of her seat. She stomped over to the dancing girl and put a halt to her flow by swatting the small musical device away. "You're lookin' rough, Miss Tone Deaf!"

"Hey! That was from my hermano!"

"Okay you two, cut it out." Numbuh 361 intervened before things got out of control. He hopped down between the girls and addressed the team's math whiz first. "Numbuh 360, I've already told you about maiming fellow operatives." The girl just huffed as he turned to the other with a hesitant look. "And 358, uh, maybe you could sing a bit more quietly. Or to yourself." His eyes then shifted as he thought about it clearly. "…or not at all."

"Aw man," The Spanish girl moaned she bent over to recover her mp3. Once in her she jumped back into her seat and began preaching of how they were suppressing her talent. "Why you guys always gotta be bringing me down? You're harshing on my passion. My life. Mi alma!"

"And you're harshing on our ears."

Rachel was silent throughout the whole exchange, yet she couldn't help the small smile tugging on her lips. This was just like it always was. Numbuh 360 snapping on 358 for singing badly. It was just one of those things that never got old, and even though she had no idea why she was here to see it, it didn't stop her from enjoying it. This was probably the first time she truly smiled all night.

"If it helps, Numbuh 358," Rachel began timidly, feeling the need to include herself in the conversation. "You sound much better then last time."

The brown haired singer blinked a moment before she beamed with extreme pride and joy. "See! See! I am fantastic!"

"Heh, she's just being nice, pop-star." The Sector Q leader chuckled. "That or she has the most weirdest taste in music in the history of ever."

"Heh, Rachel's weird alright." Numbuh 360 added in with a smirk, her accent being forced down now that she was somewhat calm. "Like back up at the Moonbase. Fooling around and not knowing where the heck she was." She giggled, amusing her teammate's behavior was a joke. "Like right now! She's acting like she hasn't seen us in years or something! Ha ha ha!"

Rachel sheepishly looked down as the three broke out into light laughter. She really hadn't seen them in years. At least it was that way to her. But a lot of had changed, who's to say this wasn't one of them? Did her new position as not top commander have something to do with her team picking her up? It was like they were treating her like she never left them. Her eyes widened as she thought that out, and her head snapped to them about to ask. But once again, she was interrupted by Numbuh 359.

"You wanna know what's really weird? 358's butchering of all things musical has put me in the mood for some real tunes." The pilot then turned back to his panel, flipping with the radio switch as the Spanish singer slumped her seat defeated and embarrassed. "There's gotta be something on the local station."

Numbuh 360 rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms. "If it's Christmas songs, then just turn it off. My lousy uncle would NOT stop playin' Santa Baby earlier today!"

"Shush!" The pilot surprisingly waved about as e picked up something on a stray channel. "I thought I heard something!" The boy kept fiddling with the radio until he found what he was looking for. After a few more attempts, he stopped on a station that went on about something holiday special going on."

"…you heard right folks! The new Yipper: Destroyers of Elbiux card tin is 75% off! 75% off! So come on down to the Hugiplex Shopping Center and take part in this crazy last minute Christmas Eve sale! It's first come, first serve, so you better run, run, run before you miss your chance!"

Everyone, even Rachel, froze as the announcement finished before playing some holiday tune. But it went unnoticed the children took a cautious glance towards the boy in the cockpit. A wicked gleam entered the kid's eyes as the words played about on his mind, and then he suddenly sat up straighter, a grin slowly working it's way up. "S-Seventy-five percent?"

"H-hey man," Numbuh 358 calmly spoke out as she gulped a bit. "No need to go loco…"

"Seventy-five percent?"

"Oh no!" Numbuh 360 yelled out as she slashed her arms up and down trying to dissuade the boy from his thoughts. "Don't you do it!"

"Yipper cards at seventy-five percent!"

"Quick!" Numbuh 361 called out, acting if it were some life or death situation. Rachel knew what was going on. Numbuh 359 always got crazy whenever Yipper was involved. Thinking swiftly, her nails dug into the stool of her chair as she hung on, and the other three tried to return and hook their seat belts in time. "Evasive –"

"HERE I COME!"

At the pilot's shout, he yanked down on the yoke with all his might, and the ship suddenly rocketed forward at trail-blazing speeds. Numbuh 360 lost her footing and was thrown into the back wall while the nurse and sector leader clutched their seats and hung on for dear life. Rachel had wrapped herself around the chair completely and she clenched her eyes shut as force and gravity tugged on her strongly. Then a surprising hitch came when 359 went into a sharp turn and the S.C.A.M.P.E.R rolled upside down for the briefest of moments. The blonde lost her holding and went into the air. The numerous flips and barrel rolls of the ship caused her imitate hovering, before it started to slow in speed. Before she fell, Rachel shot her hands out and grabbed into her seat, and as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R jerked into a stop, she managed to flip herself back into a sitting position perfectly. The only side effect was the massive dizziness that followed.

However, the rest of Sector Q wasn't quite as lucky. As soon as Numbuh 359 stopped, inertia started. Numbuh 361 and Numbuh 358 slammed into the back of their seats, while Numbuh 360 went flying towards the front of the ship. Just as Numbuh 359 bent over to unclasp his seat belt, the math whiz screamed as she flew over him, not stopping until she smacked into the glass of the windshield.

"Uggh." The girl moaned as she was momentarily sticking to the glass, her face and skin mashing up where ever it made contact. The southerner was about to snap again until she noticed a sign out front. "Hey! They're having a sale on graphing pap-AAH!" Her stick choose that second to unstuck and she yelped as she fell to the floor.

"Who cares about stupid school stuff?" Numbuh 359 frantically responded as he leapt out the door. He landed down on the concrete with a grin and took off like a bullet for the nearest entrance to the packed mall. "Gangway!"

Numbuh 361 mumbled as he picked himself off the floor. The boy looked back to see Rachel and Numbuh 358 stable, so he stepped over to the fallen Numbuh 360, gently lifted her off the deck. "Okay new rule; nobody even think of getting up out of their seats when 359 is at the wheel."

"I hear ya." The platinum blonde mumbled as she got her bearings. "So what now?"

"Hmm," The sector leader mused as he glanced to his watch. "Well we got plenty of time before we gotta get home. How 'bout we head on in there and make sure 359 doesn't get mugged?"

"Oh yes!" Numbuh 358 cheered, bubbling with anticipation all of a sudden. "That new album I want is out!" The girl hurried out the bay door running in after her teammate. Numbuh 360 rolled her eyes, but smiled as she followed out a tad more slowly.

Numbuh 362 nodded to himself as he saw everyone go out. He took a step out into the chilly night, but stopped as he looked over his shoulder. There in her seat was Rachel. Just staring off into space. "Hey, Numbuh 362? You comin' or what?"

"Huh?" Rachel looked over at the Sector Q leader before shaking her head. "Uh, yeah. I'll meet you inside." The kid held her gaze for a minute longer, but only shrugged as he went about his way. Once he was gone, Rachel frowned to herself as she got down from her stool. "Talk about a roller coaster ride."

The blonde stepped out of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R into the cold winter night, and shivered at the climate change. The temperature on the Moonbase was always the same comfortable dial all year long, and stepping back into Earth whether after so long took a while to get accustomed to. Pushing that thought aside, Rachel gazed out to the parking lot before her. Hundreds of people walked along. Adults scuttled in and out in a hurry to get last minute shopping done, and some children played on the amassed snow banks on the edges of the sidewalk for amusement. It still amazed her how crazy the population seemed to get when Christmas time came rolling around.

But back to the matter at hand. Rachel stood outside the sloppily parked S.C.A.M.P.E.R as she tried to figure out her new change in scenery. She wanted to know why her old team decided to just show up now. They never did before. That isn't to say it bothered her. Well sure, it bothered her they kinda just dragged her out here, but she had nothing else to do now. But the main point was, she was actually glad to see them again. She couldn't even begin to recall the last time she had met up with any of them after she got promoted. As awkward as it was, it felt good to see the four act as they did. To see 361 try to be peacekeeper, 358 trying to sing, 360 threatening to mute her, and 359 going wild over the idea of new Yipper cards. Well it scared the crud out of her, the ride over here had been a little exciting.

Rachel's frown lightened a bit as she thought of her sector. Okay, she it was safe to admit that she missed them. That was normal. What wasn't normal is how they just showed up out of nowhere. Why was that? Could someone explain it to her?

"Oh sweet mercy," Her ears perked up at the voice, and she looked behind her to see Henry stumbling out of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. The angel had just randomly popped up, but this time he didn't look anywhere near as smug. He looked pathetic as he hobbled down, clutching his stomach and his face looking a sickly green. "Sugar cookies and turbulence just don't go together like they used to. Ugh."

Rachel only rose a brow, feeling somewhat creeped out about how he could just show up out of nowhere. "What were you doing?"

"Cut me some slack. I've never flown before and I wanted to see what it was like." After he finished, his stomach made a gurgling noise and he cringed. "But if it's anything like that particular experience, I don't feel all that motivated anymore." The wind suddenly blew around them harshly, and Henry glared up at the night sky. "I was kidding! Learn to take a joke!"

"So you were there the whole time?" Rachel asked, her eyes following him until he was down at her level.

"Course I was. I'm your guardian angel, it's in my job description. I was the reason you didn't go flying like everyone else. I'm there whether you know it or not." He muttered out as he leaned against the ship for support. His eyes peeked upon as he looked down, and his face scrunched up as he noticed something. "But I can't do squat about the ticket you guys are gonna get for parking in the handicap zone."

Rachel ignored that as she frowned at the angel. "Then why didn't you make yourself visible? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Didn't wanna intrude on the moment." Henry shrugged as he took a relaxing breath. His queasiness died down, and he felt some of his former kick returning. "Enjoy yourself, by the way?"

"I…" Rachel started before remembering her question. "What's going on? Why did my old team just show up and bring me here?"

"Well for starters, they're not your old team. They are your team. They picked you up because you're a member of Sector Q."

"How does that work?" Rachel inquired bewildered. "Even if I'm not Supreme Leader, I got promoted to Covert Opts on the Moonbase."

"That you did. And after the new Supreme Leader took charge, you kept working for them. Then one day you were assigned this one mission with your old team as back up. It all went off without a hitch, and it made you realize how much you missed being part of a sector instead of being all on your lonesome on some three day stakeout." Henry explained, his air-sickness gone and back to his old self-proclaimed charming self. "Apparently the Supreme Leader was pleased with the results, and you resigned form Covert and were allowed back into your old position as Stealth Tactical Officer of Sector Q."

The blonde girl absorbed the bountiful information she had just been presented. The actions of her teammate's made sense now. They acted that way because to them, she was a part of Sector Q and had been for quite some time now. Rachel blinked a few times as she tried to get a grasp on all of it. "So you're saying I'm…just another agent out in the field?"

"Yep." Henry nodded. "Exactly what you wanted, a life of diminished expectations and to be free from that office. The only thing you have to worry about nowadays is the mission alarm sounding off. Other then that, no paperwork, and no worries." Henry then grinned some more as he leaned forward. "You also get a fine gaggle of characters to call friends. Am I doin' well so far?"

"Friends?" Rachel worded out as if the term was new to her. Of course it wasn't. She's had friends before. It's just that she never found the time for any of them after she took office, and then by that point she could only claim a small few as acquaintances. But now it was different. Not only did she have teammates again, she had friends again. Now more curious then ever, Rachel glanced back to the mall. "Just how close are we?"

"You can go find out if ya want. It's Christmas Eve and you're not Supreme Leader. Shouldn't you be dancing with glee?" Before he could say another word, his stomach suddenly started up again, and this time he groaned as it forced him to bend over. "Ooooh."

"Um, are you alright?"

"No, this is just how we angels express utter joy." Henry deadpanned his face contorted. "Listen, you go on ahead. Have a good time. If you need me, I'll just over by that fine specimen of garbage can over there." Without another peep, Henry covered his mouth as he ran towards the aforementioned can.

Rachel watched the boy toss off the lid and dunk his head in; grimacing when she heard a disgusting heaving noise. Looking back towards the mall, she slowly stepped away from the scene and fully turned to enter the large building. She was intent on finding her team, and see what else the night had to offer.


Inside the mall, Numbuh 358 lightly swayed to and fro as the music drummed within her ears. She took in some air, but then stopped as she remembered she was advised not to. Numbuh 361 had ordered her to never sing in public, which she could not understand. Just because her team didn't love her beautiful voice didn't mean the rest of the world didn't. But as the beat picked up in momentum, she found she could not contain herself anymore. But luckily before she could utter one note, she spotted a familiar shade of blonde and orange carefully stepping in past the automatic doors.

"Numbuh 362!" She greeted as ran to meet the girl halfway. Rachel's surprise went unnoticed as the dark haired operative rushed up to her. "Finally! What was taking you so long?"

"Uh, bathroom?" Rachel blinked, then rolled her eyes at her lame excuse. But Numbuh 358 seemed too engrossed with her mp3 to even care. "What are you waiting near the door for?"

"For you." The girl answered. "The others told me to so you would know where to go. And so you don't, how you say, get lost?"

"Right! Of course." Rachel agreed once it clicked. It made perfect sense, going in a mall looking for somebody alone on Christmas Eve wasn't really the brightest idea. She then rose her eyes around her and looked all over to lobby. It was packed tight and all the adults and children seemed to mix and blend into one massive being. Unless they knew exactly where they were going, she didn't see how they could find anybody in this crowd. "So where are the guys?"

"They're near the center where everybody is waiting to see Santa. That's where we're waiting for Numbuh 359." Without further delay, the girl grabbed Rachel's wrist and eagerly tugged her along. "Come on!"

Rachel decided it would be best not to fight it and let the girl drag her along. It wasn't like she was leading her off a cliff. The two female operatives pushed and plowed through the masses, twisting around corners and using their small frames to duck underneath adults' legs until at long last, they made it to the center of the mall. The blonde looked up in wonder, not remembering the last time she had been here. The whole center was shaped like some large auditorium, even complete with the dome like glass ceiling. Small outlets selling all sorts of wares circled along the walls until they broke off into passageways leading to other parts of the mall, and there smack dab in the middle, the floor was dressed up like the North Pole. Fake fluffy snow, cut out reindeer, and giant candy canes weren't far from common as the line stretched on for what seemed like miles of kids waiting to see the fake mall Santa.

"They really got festive this year." Rachel mumbled as she stared oddly at the sight. Tearing her brown orbs away from the men in elf suits, she glanced around trying to scout out the rest of her team. "Are they in line somewhere?"

"No, they're over there." At Numbuh 358 voice, Rachel turned towards the left to see Numbuh 360 and 361 sitting at one of the many tables off to the side. Grinning, the Spanish girl took off in a hurry. "Hey guys!" Smiling a bit herself, Rachel followed along. Just not as quickly.

"There y'all are," Numbuh 360 commented as she put down her slurpee. When the final two girls of Sector Q took their seats, Numbuh 360 smirked playfully in Rachel's direction. "Numbuh 358 didn't drive ya deaf did she?"

"I resent that!" The tone deaf girl snapped. After a moment she huffed and stuck her nose her pointedly. "You are just not cultured enough to begin to appreciate my special voice."

"Well…it's special alright." Rachel lightly joked, trying to bring up her mood. She was just waiting for them to snap at her. Fuss at how she never talked to them after she left for the Moonbase. Yet, they never did. Numbuh 360 and 361 even laughed at her poor attempt at a joke. It felt nice. "So, where's Numbuh 359?"

"Over in nerd heaven." Numbuh 361 answered as her gestured to a comic book store across the large floor. It was so full, that people were barely able to fit through the door. The leader examined Rachel's face, chuckling a bit at how it scrunched up. "Yeah, that's what we thought too. So we decided to grab some snacks and a table."

Numbuh 360 snorted. "Ya forgot to mention how we had to knock off a few teenagers to get this table."

"We haven't fought any teenagers in such a long time." Numbuh 358 added in. "The last time we fought any was when we had to stop that idiota Chad back in the Fall."

"I remember that!" Numbuh 361 laughed as the words jarred his memory. "That was when he and those jocks were gonna use that foot-bomb thing to blow up the Moonbase, right? Man, that was crazy." He dimly smirked as he reminisced. "We woulda been toast if Numbuh 362 didn't sneak in and replace the payload."

Rachel blinked. "I did?"

"Course ya did. You kicked major teen tail." Numbuh 360 smirked. "Ya set the timer right and everything. Heh, those stupid city-boys were covered in horse radish for the rest of the season!"

At that, Rachel sheepishly looked down. She was getting praised for something she didn't even do. Well, technically she did do it, but just didn't recall it. "I'm sure it was nothing."

Suddenly her eyes narrowed as she went over what they just said. Chad trying to blow up the Moonbase with a foot-bomb? That mission sounded so familiar, and for some reason she didn't remember Sector Q being the team to take care of it. Then who? She knew the answer, but couldn't seem to form it all right now. Wait, wasn't it–

"Ha! Only you would be modest enough to say saving the whole Moonbase was nothing. Ya shoulda gotten some reward for it." Numbuh 360 laughed, breaking Rachel's train of thought. The platinum blonde mathlete grinned as she reached down under the table. "Reach reminds me, I picked up this for ya while we were getting snacks."

Rachel rose a brow as the girl placed a plate on the table. When she finally looked at it, her expression filled with awe. "Is that –"

"Cheesecake!" Numbuh 361 yelled out as he analyzed the dessert. The boy's mouth was agape as the plate was passed to Rachel, and after staring at it some more, the orange wearing girl beamed as she took a fork and prepared to dig into it. While she was doing that, the Sector Q leader glared at Numbuh 360. "No fair! You told me they didn't have anymore!"

"Oh can it, windpipe." The math whiz scolded. "You know how much Numbuh 362 likes it. Besides, we all owed her something for saving our hides."

"T-Thank you, 360." Rachel got out as she stared at a slice of her favorite dessert. All she could manage was a smile as look down it, and what it represented. This was her teammate's – her friend's way of showing her gratitude. She hadn't got anything like this in ages. There hadn't been any, 'thanks for taking care of all that paperwork Numbuh 362'. No, 'great job on handling the peace negotiation m'am'. She never got any of that as Supreme Leader. But she didn't have to worry about that anymore, because she wasn't Supreme Leader.

That sentence didn't sound nearly as bad as it did earlier, she found herself thinking as she took a bite of the sweet cake.

"Don't mention it." Numbuh 360 nodded. "It's the least ya deserve. Sorry it took so long to get it. But ya shoulda got something more from that stingy old Supreme Leader."

"Numbuh 360!" Numbuh 358 suddenly snapped. The dark haired girl was frowning at her teammate and her expression look surprisingly scolding. "How could you be so disrespectful!"

Numbuh 360 blinked before her own words caught up with her. "G-Gosh, y'all know I didn't mean it like that." She then twiddled with her thumbs, looking mildly ashamed. "Ain't no operative should talk about him that way."

"Talk about who? The Supreme Leader?" Rachel asked after swallowing her last bite. She looked around the table, and was a bit shocked to see everyone looking so somber. "Hey guys, it's alright. It's not like Numbuh 60's going to hound you for joking around."

"They didn't mean Numbuh 60," Numbuh 361 started as he sighed a bit. "They were talking about Numbuh –"

"I'm back!" They all jumped when Numbuh 359 suddenly slammed a metal card tin down on the table. The green jacket wearing pilot grinned bemusedly as he took a seat between Rachel and Numbuh 358. "You guys miss me?"

Numbuh 360 rolled her eyes. "If you're itching for a positive answer to that, then your odds aren't lookin' so hot."

The boy only crossed his arms. "That's real nice, math geek. And after all I do for you guys?"

Numbuh 358 paused in her humming to stare oddly at the boy. "You mean going bananas in mid-air and almost crashing us into the ground at a kajillion miles per hour for some trading cards?"

"…Well dang, when you say it like that I guess I don't hafta give you guys these!" He responded as he pulled up a bag filled with various books. "I am the master at haggling!"

"What are those?"

"My presents to you guys," He started as he pulled out a large math-book. "Algebraic Brain Farts for Numbuh 360." He passed the book to the girl, which she took with a wild grin. "So You Wanna Be a Tween Pop-star for Numbuh 358."

As she took the purple book, the Spanish girl looked it over and scoffed. "I do not need this. My voice is excellent." When she received dry looks from the rest of the table, she nervously chuckle as she tucked it into her sweater. "But perhaps this shall help me get better. Gracias!"

The fly boy shrugged as he passed a pink book to his sector leader. "I picked up the Rainbow Monkey Christmas Love Special for you, guy. Y'know for your 'sister'?" He motioned with air quotes.

"Sweet! This is the one where Snow Fluff Rainbow Monkey reveals that she's Scrooge MacMeanie Rainbow Monkey's long lost daughter!" Once he realized he said that out loud, he coughed into his hands and hid the book into his yellow coat. "So…yeah, my lil sis is gonna love that. Thanks."

"Right," Numbuh 359 mumbled before turning to Rachel. "And for you Numbuh 362, they were selling the original episodes of Doctor Time-Space. And since the store manager owes me a favor, I snagged you the first season." The said as he placed the box set within her awaiting hands. "I personally don't see what the fuss is about, but to each his…or, her own I guess."

"No way!" Rachel fangirl squealed as she hugged the DVD box set to her chest. But then she froze, now realizing her secret obsession with the nerdy series had been discovered. "Wait, how did you know I'm a Doctor Time-Space fan?" She never remembered sharing that embarrassing bit of information with them, even when she was apart of the team.

"Oh come, Rachel. We found you out when we caught you sneaking in the convention last year." Numbuh 361 shrugged as he finished his soda. "But don't worry, we still aren't planning on telling anybody."

"Yeah," Numbuh 358 agreed as she bobbed along with her music. "What are friends for?"

"Right," Rachel silently agreed as she traced her finger along her gift. "Friends." This…this wasn't turning out to be so bad as she thought. She got to have some cheesecake, a Christmas present, and some actual friends to hang out with. She rarely got to hang out with Fanny or Patton because she kept herself so busy. She was so used to being alone and no one being there to brighten her day. This was beyond fantastic.

But then, why even now did it feel like something was missing? It was like a nagging feeling, like something felt a bit off. A bit wrong. That last statement she thought out, why did it feel incorrect? She then frowned and shook it off. It was probably nothing. Besides, she had friends, desserts, and present. What more could she want?

"Well if Numbuh 359 is done with being Secret Santa, then how about we get outta here?" The Sector Q leader asked. As if to show he meant it, he jumped down and threw his empty soda carton into the trash. He looked around the growing crowd of people and groaned. "I don't want to be here anymore then I have to."

"Agreed," Numbuh 360 said as she joined her leader. "My Pa is gonna be awful sore if he found me here without anybody watching me."

"Okay guys." Rachel nodded as the other started leaving the table. Looking down at her leftover cheesecake and new DVD set, she sighed as she managed to bring what she could. "Wait for me by the Santa line, I need to get my things together." The other only nodded as they took off. Deciding not the waste the delicious dessert, she scooped it up in one gulp before hopping out of her seat. But while tucking her present under her arm, her senses tingled as she felt a presence behind her. She then smirked, that angel boy wasn't as sneaky as he thought. Before he could catch on she turned on her heel and shouted.

"Ha! You can't sneak up on…me?" Her look faltered as she saw that no one was there. The blonde looked around confused, figuring she must have been off. "I could've sworn that was him."

"Little ol me?"

"GAH!" Rachel jumped as she twisted around. There was Henry, looking smug as ever and it was really ticking her off. "Quit doing that!"

"Wow, sure glad you're not my team's spy." His hand reached behind his back, and when it returned, he revealed yet another Christmas cookie from Rachel's tin.

"You're still eating those?" She asked as he mindlessly chomped away on the sugar treat. "I thought you would have cut back after earlier."

"I blame what I flew, not what I chew." Henry chuckled as he took another bite. However he paused mid chomp, then suddenly spit the bits out in disgusts. "Gross! It had nuts in it!"

"I happen to like nuts, thank you very much."

"What is wrong with you?" Henry muttered as he tossed the cookie away. "Someone must've been sipping a little too much holy water when they assigned me to you. A girl who likes nuts…honestly!"

Rachel smirked amusingly. "They do say opposites attract."

"I'm flattered, but it wouldn't work out." Henry teased as Rachel rolled her eyes. "But enough about me, how about you? Having a delightful time?"

Rachel shifted her gaze as she began walking towards her teammate across the floor. "I suppose so."

"You suppose? Come on, you can tell me, right?"

"Fine. I guess I'm having more fun then I thought I would." Rachel admitted, both to Henry and a bit to herself. "Happy now?"

"The question is, are you happy?" Henry countered back. "Cause if you're not, I'm doing something wrong."

"I'll admit this is nice. More then nice. It feels…good." Rachel muttered with a small smile. "I mean, I have an actual team now. Friends. Friends who I actually have time for now."

"You coulda had friends as Supreme Leader," Henry suggested. "If time was the issue, I'm sure you could have found some way to manage it. Being boss of your own hours and all."

"It wasn't that simple." Rachel frowned. "There was always people keeping me busy."

"You kept yourself busy, Rachel." Henry said without looking at her. "You choose to stay behind and do all that extra paperwork, nobody asked you to."

"What is your deal?" The blonde snapped to the angel. "One minute you're telling me to have fun, see how great it is not to be Supreme Leader. Then you pull a three-sixty and go off guilt-tripping me to think otherwise!"

"I told you before Rachel, I'm calling it like I see it. It's my job to be honest with you. If it helps you decide what you want, then that's what I'm gonna do." His regular smirk returned as he began munching on another cookie. One he had made sure that there were no nuts. "But what does any of that matter? This is what you want, is it not?"

"Yeah," Rachel uttered as she glanced off to the side. "I guess it is."

"Trouble in paradise?"

"It's just that…I feel like something's not there." She revealed as they stopped for a moment. "I'm not saying I'm not happy with what I've gotten. I appreciate it, but it's like there's this hole."

"There's no excitement? No spark?" Henry elaborated, feeling that maybe his job would be over a bit earlier then he thought. "There's nothing there to make it a bit more interesting? Something that annoys you but at the same time makes it all worth while?"

"Yes, that sounds about right." Rachel nodded. Suddenly, it hit her. "Wait, I think I know what it is."

"You do?" Henry asked, he then smiled. "Well then –"

"I must be bored." Rachel interrupted. "I haven't done anything like a real field operative in Zero knows how long. This is all relaxing, but there's no action to it." She then shook her head. "Don't worry about though, I'll get over it."

However, Henry slumped. "You're…you're bored?" That was it? Darn, he should have known that it was too good to be true. The boy then shrugged, straightening up a bit. Kids will be kids, he supposed. "Fine. If it's action what you want, then action is what you'll get." He then stopped for a moment, then grumbled. "Geez, I thought I was an angel, not some genie."

"Wait," Rachel stopped yet again as she looked to the boy. "Were you thinking of something else?"

"Yes, I'll admit our brainwaves weren't in sync there." But then, he just smirked as he looked towards the blonde girl. "But, if you weren't thinking about it…then it must not be that important to you."

Rachel frowned. "What isn't important?" She asked, but turned around to see she was talking to thin air. Giving a dry look before walking back to her team. "Stupid Houdini angel."

Near the Santa line, Sector Q fiddled around with their own musings waiting for Rachel to get done. Numbuh 359 glanced up from his watch to see the blonde coming and grinned. "Took you long enough."

"Sorry, I was talking to my imaginary friend." Rachel muttered under her breath before swinging her hair back in place. "Are we leaving now?" She was quite ready to get back in bed and wake up to end this dream, even if it was turning out to be a pleasant one.

Numbuh 361 nodded. "Yeah. Let's get going –"

"And I want ALL the action figures, understand?"

The five stopped at the whiny voice, and looked back into the direction. There at the top of the fake North Pole the mall staff had crafted was the fake Santa they had hired. The man in the red suit and fake bread didn't fit the description all that well. He was not rotund in shape, nor did he appear all the jolly. And who would blame him, the poor soul had some spoiled child screeching in his ear. The adult's eyebrows twitched, and he looked ready to snap on a moment's notice.

Numbuh 361 rose an eyebrow. "That's supposed to be Santa?"

"That fella looks skinner then a string-bean left in a frying pan in the middle of June."

"Uh, yes." Numbuh 358 nodded with Numbuh 360's strange phrase. "And he doesn't look very nice at all!"

Rachel narrowed her eyes as she looked the adult over. "Doesn't he seem, familiar?"

Back with the mall Santa, then man grit his teeth as he tried to control his rising anger. He had an idea of what to get the brat, but he had to play the act. Just a few more hours. "Well, be a good little boy and you will –"

"I'm not done yet!" The child interrupted. "I want the Ninja Code video game, a new bicycle, and every Yipper card ever made! Are you writing this down? Cause I know where you live!"

"I…I…" The man growled. Finally, he could not fight it anymore and leapt up to his feet. "I CANNOT TAKE THIS ANYMORE! This is NOT worth two-fifty an hour!"

"Um actually," One of the men in elf costumes hesitantly interrupted. "You're not getting paid. This is part of your community service."

The Santa blinked before raging some more. "That is IT! I do not care if I am sent to jail again, you heathens shall not get away with this any longer!" He hissed as his hand waved over the crowd of shocked children before him. "Christmas cheer. Bah! This holiday brings out the absolute worst in children! Never being satisfied with they have been given. Always complaining and wanting more! You have all been naughty, and even coal is too good for any of you!"

Everyone started to back away as the mall Santa apparently snapped. A few mall security guards were about to advance on the crazed man, but stopped dead in their tracks when the adult actually started to hover into the air.

"This year, I will handle Santa's naughty list PERSONALLY! This year, there shall be no goodies in your stockings, no undeserved presents under the tree! This year, you children shall know the stingy, holiday wrath of," He suddenly began spinning within the air, wind flaring up and a cloak surrounding him. The red, white, and gold of his attire slowly morphed into purple, black, and pale within the whirlwind. When he finally stopped, there was no longer a mall Santa. It was a pale being with sharp fangs, a wicked vampire cloak, and two large gloved hands ready for a good spanking.

"COUNT SPANKULOT!" The adult villain announced with pride and glee as he swarmed over the children, making the brat who was just on his lap the first victim. "I vant to smack your butt! Bw ha ha ha ha ha!"

This guy was on a kids' cartoon?

"Ah crud, it's the Count!" Numbuh 359 cursed out as the spank-happy vampire began scooping kids in his clutches and manically laughed as he spanked away with glee. The pilot groaned as he started to cover his own hide. "The one lame villain I wanted avoid this year."

"Well there's no avoiding him now. Let's take care of him fast, it's almost time for dinner!" Numbuh 361 grounded out as he took in the area around him, coming up with a battle plan. He looked to the flexible candy canes, the animatronic reindeer and nodded. "Numbuh 359, distract him so 358 can move into position for some fancy footwork. 360, I want those reindeer hacked and ready to go on my signal." He then turned to Rachel. "Numbuh 362, you finish him off when I pass him to ya. Got it?"

"Wha?"

"Good. Kids Next Door!" He ordered out, the operatives around him tensing. "Battle Stations!"

"Wait a second!" Rachel yelled out, but the other four had already taken off. The blonde slumped, having no idea to what the sector leader wanted her to do. "What am I supposed to be doing?"

"Whatddya mean, 'what are you supposed to be doing'?" She snapped around, seeing Henry leaning against the railing that was meant to keep the line in order. "You're KND, he's an adult baddie. What more is there to it?"

"I don't know what position I'm supposed to be in." Rachel grounded out. "What use am I?"

"Don't sweat about. Just have some fun." Henry grinned as he began eating another cookie. "Let loose and go with your first instinct. You'll know the right thing to do."

Rachel was about to pose another argument before she stopped. What was she doing? Supreme Leader or not, she was Kids Next Door! Nodding, she rose her fists and turned towards the Count. "Right."

"Hold up." Henry got out before she took take off. The angel then reached down towards the floor, and came back up with a long pole like weapon in his grip. "Never say I'm not lookin' out for ya."

Rachel studied the weapon in his hand, and when she recognized it, she grinned.

"Tis the season for giving…giving a good spanking! Ah ha ha ha ha ha!" Count Spankulot chortled as he delivered his brand of painful justice upon another kid's tush. With one final smack, he let the kid go; holding his butt and tears streaming down his face. The vampire then smirked as he tried to pick out his next victim from the panicking crowd. "Who's posterior shall beckon me next?"

"Hey, Count Stinks-a-lot!" The adult villain perked up, and turned towards the sound. There he saw Numbuh 359, taunting him and bending over. "I got something for ya right here!" He shouted as he shook his rump.

The Count glared as he rose up into the air. "Ah, Kids Next Door! I hope your codenumber is low," He then spread his arms, and dove for the pilot. "Because that is how many spanks you shall be getting!" However right when he was upon the operative, he felt a foot ram into his cheek.

"Gah!" The Count grunted as he tumbled to the ground. The vampire themed villain rubbed at his sore cheek with disdain, and glowered at the child how landed right before him. "You shall pay for that!"

"Hola, senior." Numbuh 358 greeted with a curtsey. The tanned girl then looked up the villain with a wicked grin. "Would you care to dance?"

"What are you – OW!" He yelped as the kid rose her foot up and slammed it down on his own. Numbuh 358 then giggled as her feet moved about quickly, delivering grace and pain in perfect combination. Her heel pressed down into the Count's foot causing him to hop on his good foot. She then danced behind him, and kicked her leg out, tripping him up. Once he was done, she jumped up, spun in the air, and purposely landed on his chest.

"OFA!" The man hacked out as the air rushed out in one heave. He growled as he swatted his hands at the girl, but she only jumped up and landed on the railing. The Count got to his feet, and tried to smack the girl down, but the operative just tapped along the rails; feet making rhythmic clanks as she dodged every blow. "Hold still – AH!"

"It takes two to tango, senior bad guy." Numbuh 358 smirked as she took his hands. The dark haired combat expert then jerked the Count around in false dancing motions. She continued to move along the railing as she pulled the vampire along, and when the time had come, she began twirling him, and twirling him until he went into a wild, uncontrollable spin. Then she shouted as she spun the Count in her teammate's direction. "Three Fifty-Eight!"

Numbuh 359 smirked as the Count headed his way. He reached behind his back, and produced a S.L.A.N.K.E.R he had carried on person. He waited until the villain got close, then slammed the blunt end of the weapon into the Count's midsection. The adult grunted, his eyes still spinning. But he would not get a break for the pilot choose that moment to bat him away with his S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. "Three Fifty-Nine!"

Over near the robotic reindeer, Numbuh 360 had the side plate open as she tuned the decoration to her design. Once all the adjustments had been made, she slammed the hatch shut, then pulled out her notebook. She looked up to see the Count flying towards her, then began scribbling down calculations. When she was satisfied, she nodded, and pushed the fake reindeer exactly two and a half steps to the right, and waited three point six second before banging her fist against it. The reindeer shook and spluttered, and right when the Count came down, 360's 'adjustments made the thing kick its back rear legs and buck the vampire away like a real deer. "Three Sixty!"

The leader of Sector Q grinned as he saw the Count flying towards him screaming. Numbuh 360's calculations never failed. Nodding, the dark skinned boy rubbed his hands together before pulling back on the tallest candy cane he could find. The giant ornament creaked and groaned as it was pulled back, and the operative never let go until the Count was in range. When he let go of the candy cane, it snapped up and batted the Count away with a painful smack. "Three Sixty-One!"

Rachel looked up to see the Count coming down at her. She then looked down in her hands at the weapon Henry had given her. Smiling to herself, the blonde charged forward and stuck her trademark Yield sign outwards. Once she sprinted a good distance, she slammed the blunt boxing glove end to the tiled floor and used it to vault herself into the air. As she came up, she hoisted the weapon over her head and spun it between her nimble fingers as she aimed for the Count. The last the thing the villain heard before it all blacking out was Rachel's jubilant cry of, "Three Sixty-Two!"

TWHACK!


The face of a black and blue Count Spankulot was hidden away once the doors of the police car closed on him. With the villain locked up, the officer lowered himself into the driver's seat and towed the adult away for violating his parole. The crowd of shoppers hummed with gossip of how the mall Santa cracked, and vindictive mothers vowed revenge on the Count as they tended to their sore children. But near the back out of sight, Sector Q laughed as they made their way back to their ride.

"Heh, let's hope he stays locked up this time." Numbuh 359 commented near the front. "My butt can rest much easier knowing he's off the streets."

"Hear hear." Numbuh 360 agreed as she huddled into her coat. "Nice job giving on him a makeover 362."

Rachel smirked a bit prideful as she twirled her Yield sign once more. "It's all in the wrist."

"I'm just wondering where you got that weapon." Numbuh 361 spoke, never tearing his gaze away from the sign in the blonde's grip. "That looks like a R.O.A.D.S.I.G.N class weapon like the ones Supreme Leaders use. Where did it come from?"

Rachel shifted her eyes before she stopped showing off the weapon. "A friend gave it to me."

Numbuh 358 was curious. "Who's your friend?"

"That'd be me." They all stopped and they looked back to see a boy, who Rachel immediately knew to be Henry. "I'm still trying to decide whether that's a good thing or not."

Numbuh 361 arched a brow. "Who are you?"

"Numbuh 1946," Henry answered with a confident smirk. "I work up on the Moonbase, so I got connections to weaponry like that."

Numbuh 360 developed something of a snide look. "I didn't know janitors could access elite 2x4 technology."

"And I didn't know blondes could do math." Henry snapped back. Someone up there was having too much fun messing with him. He grumbled as he turned to Rachel. "Janitor my – Bah. Can we go? I've only got so much time left and my boss is going to yell at me if I waste it all insulting people."

"Sorry guys, I really do have to go with him." Rachel quickly responded to quell her team's upcoming questions. Henry was already walking away, and she rolled her eyes as she tagged along. But not before waving goodbye to Sector Q. "Merry Christmas."

Henry stopped a bit, waiting for the blonde to catch up. Once she was back at his side, he faced forward. "Was that exciting enough for ya?"

"Yeah. It actually was." Rachel smiled as she twirled her Yield sign, no longer having to worry about her team's suspicious questions concerning it. "I was always one ordering operatives to fight adults, never the one to do the fighting. It felt great to feel my blood pumping, to have to use the field to your advantage and make a plan up on the fly. It was…it was fun!"

"Glad you had blast then. Woulda sent something challenging, but I don't have all night."

She peered up at the angel confused. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing right now. I'm just here to show you everything you have and don't have when you're not Supreme Leader. Which reminds me," He looked over and held his hand out. "I'm gonna be needing that Yield sign back."

"What? But this is mine. I had it custom made when I was…" She trailed off for a moment as she went over everything she had been through so far. Without another word of struggle, she passed the Yield sign back to Henry.

"Now you're getting with the program." Henry chuckled as the weapon disappeared as soon as it entered his fingers. The angel then reached into his pocket, and pulled another cookie. He was about to gobble it in one gulp, but stopped, and sighed a bit. "Not a lot of these left." He mumbled sadden as he savored it by chewing more slowly.

Rachel watched Henry eat his cookie as she thought to herself a bit. Despite everything she had been shown, had been given, something still felt a bit off. "You said you're showing me what I have, and what I don't have. There's something missing, I know there is. This is all wonderful, but why is like I'm forgetting something?"

"If you can so easily forget it, then it must have not meant much to you in the first place." Henry answered back. "You ignored it, so ergo, it's must not be important to you, right?"

"I don't know." Rachel grumbled. "It has to be important if I'm worrying about it so much. Can't you tell me?"

"Sorry Rachel, that's the one thing I can't do." Henry muttered as he finished his cookie. He stared at his empty hand before lowering it once more. "I can only give you what you want, but you have to figure out that part by yourself."

The blonde knitted her brows as she tried to think. It had to be something close to her. Something close for her to stress so much over it. Everything else was perfect expect this one nagging little thing. She rose her head up, thinking she had a good idea on what it was now. "What about my family?" She asked as she turned to Henry. "How were they affected by this?"

Henry didn't smirk or smile, only arched a brow as he looked at her. Before she could ask, he looked forward and simply pointed. Confused, Rachel followed his finger trying to find what he was motioning to. "What are you –"

"Hey, sis!"

Rachel froze at the voice, and then finally noticed a small group of young children approaching her and Henry. She recognized them as Sector W. Sonya, Patrick, and Lee. A round boy she recognized as Tommy Gilligan was with them for some reason, but her attention was solely focused on the boy leading them in front.

"Harvey." Rachel spoke out as she recognized her buck toothed blond brother. She glanced over her shoulder, a bit surprised to see Henry still present, and he tipped his head towards the young sector leader. "What are you doing here?"

"Heh, Merry Christmas to you too, sis." The boy lightly smiled at his older sibling. "We were at the park having a snowball fight when heard Count Spankulot was at the mall. We came to help, but since you're here, you must've already kicked his butt!"

"Yeah, we did." Rachel answered, staring at her brother oddly. "Harvey, are you feeling alright? You seem, different."

The boy looked confused. "Different how?"

Rachel looked back to Henry once more, who only frowned and motioned to Harvey once again. "Never mind." She sighed before greeting the rest of them. "How are you guys doing?"

Lee only flicked his yo-yo and grinned a bit. "We're cool."

"Uh-huh. We're having a good Christmas, m'am." Sonya shyly answered before glancing back to Patrick. She cupped her hands of her mouth and tried to whisper. "We're trying to cheer Numbuh 85 up."

"I can hear you." Patrick depressingly muttered. The small boy only sighed, and tugged his oversized snow cap over his head. "Not that it matters anyway."

Rachel looked at the Fulbright child worried. "What's the matter with him?"

"His cheap dad gave him AND his brother the worst haircut of the century." Tommy added with a grin. He then chuckled and pointed at Patrick trying to stifle his full laughter. "Talk about a bad hair day! Heh heh heh!"

Harvey looked towards Tommy with a scolding look. "Numbuh T, stop making fun of Numbuh 85."

"Spoil sport."

"Harvey, are you sure you're okay?" Rachel asked, a bit concerned for her sibling. He wasn't acting like Harvey, or at least the one she knew. But suddenly, all thoughts of Harvey screeched to a halt as she focused on that other odd bit. "Wait, Numbuh T?"

Tommy frowned, thinking she was insulting his choice in codenames. "The Big Computermabob said I could be Numbuh T, so I'm Numbuh T!"

"But…you're not in the Kids Next Door."

Behind her, Henry coughed. "Actually –"

"I am in the Kids Next Door!" Tommy whined. "I am! I've got the cool codename and all the gadgets to prove it! Stop saying I'm not!"

"Stop yelling at my sister!" Harvey snapped at the boy. "You're not going to be a good operative if you throw a hissy fit about everything!"

Tommy blinked before huffing. "I never wanted to be on your team anyway."

"Well like or not, you are. We're a team so get with the picture."

"Harvey, really. You're not sounding like yourself." Rachel pressed as she pressed her hand to his forehead to check for a fever. "Have you been wearing your jacket? You know how easily you get…Wait." She jerked her hand away as she realized something. "Why aren't you freaking out because I'm touching you without permission?"

"Uh, because you helped me get over it?" Harvey said confused. "And what do you mean I don't sound like myself? I'm only treating my team fair like you say I should. What? Should I be a jerk instead?"

"No I just…I said that?" Rachel mumbled not following. She then turned to Henry for help. "What's going on?"

"Ya know, I think at this point it would be wise to just play along with it." Henry shrugged. "Who knows? You might pick up a few things." Rachel only stared at the angel until Sonya spoke up.

"Um, sir? Can we go to the Ice Cream parlor now?" The short blonde asked as she shivered. "We need to go before it gets too…dark."

"Oh yeah," Harvey muttered in remembrance. "We were going to Patty's favorite ice cream joint for some hot fudge to cheer him up about his…condition." He carefully spoke. Bad hair cuts were to never be taken lightly. The boy smiled at his sister as he held his hand up. "Wanna come?"

Rachel just looked at her brother's extended hand. She couldn't believe it. Apparently here, Harvey seemed to be a bit…nicer if that were even possible. And Tommy was still in the Kids Next Door for some reason. She looked to Henry again, wanting to know the answer, but was suddenly overwhelmed by the urge to get some hot fudge with her brother more. "Can I…?"

Henry gave a tiny smirk. A bit weaker and not as smug. "If it's what you want."

"Hey sis, who are you talking to?"

Rachel looked down at her brother's confused expression, then looked back behind her to see Henry gone. Again. But she didn't seem to mind as much as she smiled at Harvey. "No one." Her hand fell into his, and the boy tugged her along as they all left to get some chocolate treats. Rachel still couldn't believe all this was happening. It was like the exact opposite of how these types of things went. It had started like a nightmare, then transformed into a blissful dream.

'If this is a dream,' Rachel found herself thinking. 'Then…I don't think I want to wake up.'