Disclaimer;

The plot is mine, and that's pretty much it. :3 Oh, my Oc's are mine. Don't take them...

I've got too many of those. XP

-cackles insanely- I seriously love this fanfiction.

It's my most favorite one that I've ever started working on. :3

I don't know why.

Italics, as you know, represent things inside somebodies head. Story parts in italics are dreams.

Simpering- I'm glad you liked it so much. Makes me feel so fluffy, impressing you. XP

super ario- -sings- I love you, I hate you, I just can't get around you. I breathe you I taste you...-stops- For some reason your review made me think of that song. :3

XxBloodsbanexX- Indeed, it's even more awkward going to school and facing it. GRAWR! FAHAHA!

blue-eyed-blonde12- Ermies...what about foooood? I needs food...-cries-

sstoons3425- I know right? XP I'm looking forward to that...ermies, if they DO meet up again. -shifty eyes-

TheSuperSkitty- When I find the time to I will do just that. :3


Chapter Seven- So Close Yet So Far Away

Paris, France

Her name was Darcy Finnigan. She was what people in America automatically thought of when they thought popular. Long blonde hair, eyes as blue as the sky itself. Slender figure, and a fashion that could make the boys drool like crazy. Oh yes, she was pretty. She also happened to think that cliques were stupid, and accepted any variety of friends that she could possibly manage. It was her belief that real friendship could be valued over popularity. She was Numbuh Twenty-nine of the Teens Next Door, and she was trying to fit the last of her clothing into her bag.

"Come on y'all better get in there." She said through grit teeth, her southern accent tinged with irritation as she pressed harder onto the top of her suitcase, "I command it!"

"I don't think commanding has anything to do with it, Numbuh Twenty-nine." The amused voice startled her, and she looked up to see Charles, or Numbuh Thirty, the youngest member of their team standing in the doorway. He was thirteen years old, having just recently been 'decommissioned' from the original KND. The boy was much shorter than she was, with dark hair that hung in dark blue eyes. He adjusted his glasses and added nervously, "Numbuh Thirty-seven says you might as well not pack anyways."

Darcy narrowed her eyes. She was second-in-command here at Sector V of the TND. Paris was supposed to be a temporary HQ for them, they were bunking down with the local sector. Their team leader, Numbuh Five, Abigail Lincoln, had gone to Cleveland to set up their new HQ there. Cleveland was one of the most active spots with adult and teen leaders, having three of the worst of them all in the same city.

The girl grabbed for Charles's hand as she brushed passed him, catching the younger boy off guard as she practically dragged him to the balcony that over-looked the main room. The local sector was out on an important mission, and the only two people besides Darcy and Charles were the remaining members of the team.

First there was Cody, the other girl of the team. Her skin was olive colored and her eyes a dark brown. Her hair was black, but she kept it cropped short so that it barely brushed the top of her shoulders unlike Darcy's long blond hair. It was also thick, and had a tendancy to be frizzy whenever it was wet. She was operative Numbuh Twenty-eight, and had been Darcy's friend since the days they fought adult tyranny in the KND. Now she was immersed in one of her favorite television shows, an anime about a teenager dectective that turns into a little kid because of a pill or something like that.

Then there was Richard, or Rick, Numbuh Thirty-seven. His blonde hair had a brown-coppery look to it, and he wore it long and pulled into a ponytail. Rick was pretty tall for his age, towering over the rest of his team like a beast. He also had about as much brains as a piece of carpet. No, that wasn't true. Rick was brilliant but he was basically spineless and a coward. His common-sense was what made one think he was stupid. He didn't even have a little bit of it.

Something was ringing. Cody looked up from her anime in surprise, and got up to answer it. Rick was closest however, and he answered the transmission and hung up before the person, whoever it was, had a chance to even say anything. "Hey!" Cody yelled, looking irritably at Rick, "What if that was important."

"I checked the line first." Darcy heard him mumble, "It wasn't."

"Rick, are you packed yet?" Darcy yelled, making the boy jump and look over his shoulder at her. He arched an eyebrow and looked back at whatever he had been reading. Cody glared at him and elbowed the boy hard in the ribs after that. He gagged and pitched forward while Charles winced and held his side.

"Alright, alright, sheesh. No I'm not packed." Rick winced and glared up at Darcy, "There isn't any point anyways. Numbuh Five failed her mission."

"WHAT!?" That was everybody but Rick, and Darcy was suddenly running down the stairs. She had a fistful of his shirt the next instant, and was trying to haul him out of his chair. Rick's answer to this was to stand up. That lifted Darcy off of her feet, and she must have looked rather comical hanging by his shirt about three feet off the ground. Rick was pretty damn tall.

"What do you mean failed?" Darcy said, somehow still able to give him a death-glare from her undignified position. Rick smirked at her, and she fought the urge to beat him over the head with something she could get her hands on. Okay, that was a lie. She wasn't fighting the urge, she just didn't want to let go because she felt the need to control something in this situation. Besides, it couldn't be good for his shirt to have a sixteen year old girl hanging off the collar.

"That was her." He said, gesturing with his eyes towards where the call was earlier. "Her plane went down somewhere in the ocean awhile ago. I think they found an island, I don't know the coordinates changed for awhile there but now they're in pretty much the same place."

Darcy struggled to think of what to say. Charles glared at him in anger from nearby, "You mean to say that our LEADER is crash-landed and has been calling for help? That you seem to think that isn't important?"

"What the HELL Rick?" Cody added, furious, "Numbuh Five...Abby's in trouble and that's what you've been hanging up? I thought it was some girlfriend you didn't want to talk to!"

"Traitor." Darcy growled, Rick merely smirked at her and she finally let go of his shirt. As soon as her feet met the ground she kicked him as hard as she possibly could in the groin. Rick moaned and hit the ground.

"I wasn't...being a traitor dammit..." Rick croaked, "She's got...some other teen with her...could be an...enemy..."

"Your point?" Cody snarled, looking ready to slam the heel of her barefoot on his face. Darcy ran for the console and began fiddling with the buttons. She had to call Numbuh Five, to tell her that help would be on the way.


Hoagie

Hoagie was walking down a hallway. A school hallway, he could tell that. Only...he was younger than before. Pudgier, as he had been a little large in his childhood days. The other thing was that Hoagie was there, but he wasn't pudgy Hoagie. He was...watching this from the sidelines. As the younger Hoagie walked through the school he was joined by who could only be Wally. The same bowl-haircut, the same orange hooded sweatshirt (albeit a much smaller version) and the same agressive look on his face.

"But I wasn't Wally's friend till Junior High." Hoagie said to himself, not that the younger Hoagie or younger Wally even seemed to notice. Or care. It was as if he were there, but not there.

"Ah cruddy hate girls." Wally was saying a scowl on his face, "Always cruddy talkin' about cruddy girlie stuff. BLECH!"

"Aw, come on Numbuh Four, they're not all bad." Young Hoagie said with a sheepish smile. Hoagie narrowed his eyes in confusion. Numbuh Four? Now what in the world was that all about. It seemed...so right somehow. Like an old nickname that Hoagie had forgotten. Abby had a nickname like it too. She'd been Numbuh Five.

But why?

Hoagie grasped for the meaning of that name, but as he did the vision in front of him blurred. The boy felt like he was going to fall for a moment, a terribly familiar feeling. Why was that? Had he fallen recently? Could he remember?

"That's what I'm doing now. Remembering." Hoagie said, but it was a strange thing, saying that. It came out of his mouth, came from his throat. He felt the words leave him, but he never thought of them once. They just...came through him like that. As if some other person had decided to use his body as a puppet. The world around him swirled with color for a moment and he blinked in surprise. They were in a treehouse, but one that was so large that it was almost ridiculous. Not only that, but it grew out of somebodies house. "Okay, that was weird."

Weird that it would be growing out of a house, and weird that he could picture that in his head. He didn't remember ever seeing it, and he was on the inside of it now so why would he be able to even know what that was? As he turned around he froze. It was Abby, it had to be. Somehow he knew it was, even though she was younger. Probably that red hat, that hat that she always wore. She always wore it when they were kids too.

"But I just met you." He protested, she looked at him with wise brown eyes and he was falling backwards again...

Hoagie jerked awake and stared around him wildly. What...what a bizarre dream. The strange thing was the way it clung to him, even now. Like cobwebs clung to a person after they crawled through a cave. Hoagie turned his head slowly, and realized that he was soaked through and trembling badly. The sun had set, it was pitch dark around him.

Yes, he had fallen down on the ledge, and the waterfall was near. Hoagie struggled into sitting position, hating the way it made spots appear hilter-skilter in his vision. The boy gagged a bit, and looked around. Slowly, ever so slowly, he inched forward and peered over the edge.

Vertigo struck him so violently that his stomach tossed it's cookies for him. How lovely. He was still high enough to break his neck if he fell. It was a miracle he'd even hit this ledge, it hardly stuck out from the side of the cliff-edge at all. It had a deep cave, and Hoagie couldn't see the end of it.

I really really hope nothing lives in that cave. Hoagie thought. He wouldn't be able to hand a wild animal on his own. The teen inched forward, away from the edge and rested his head on the smooth stone. Oh, it hurt. Even worse than before. He felt that he would pass out any second because of it too. Still, he had to stand up.

Careful to stay away from the edge he struggled to get on his feet. Or foot, really, since his other one was hurting. Cautiously he put his weight on the ankle that had buckled beneath him when he fell. "GAH!" He yelled, staggering under the feeling of sickness that gripped his stomach and the pain from his ankle. "Dammit, dammit!"

Calm down Gilligan! He thought, and sat down slowly after hopping up and down for a moment. Things looked pretty hopeless now. He couldn't even freakin' WALK, let alone find a way to climb back up the cliff. It was unbearably cold right now, and what would he do if he was stuck on this little ledge? Starve to death?

"Abby?" Hoagie said, inching forward and looking up the side of the cliff. "ABBY!? HELP! I'M...uh, A LITTLE STUCK DOWN HERE!"

He waited, holding his breath, and when no answer came it crushed him more than he ever thought it would. Scrambling painfully back so that he was in the cave, he was tired of getting wet. He sat there, huddled against the cold and the pain in his head. Confusion swamped him. Why had Abby left?

Because she thinks you're dead you idiot. And in a little while she's going to probably be right.


Abby

She had staggered to her feet awhile ago. Forced herself to go back down the cliff. It was a steep climb down, and she honestly didn't really care that much. Abby went down it too quickly, sliding most of the way. By the time she reached the bottom her hands were scraped and bloodied. That pain didn't compare to the overwhelming sadness and guilt she felt about Hoagie.

Abby scowled at her communicator. A few minutes ago she had tried to call the team again, and had been hung up on. Fury made her grit her teeth. If those damn assholes had gotten over hear when she had first asked this never would have happened. Oh...what was the point. Hoagie's death was her fault.

She considered throwing it away. What was the point in keeping it if they weren't going to contact her? Abby shrugged her shoulders and walked listlessly through the dark jungle. It only took a few minutes of wandering for her to realize she was lost. Great. What a way to end this perfect day.

Abby leaned against a tree and slid to the overgrown floor. After a few heartbeats she leaned her face into her arms and cried again. Abby, crying. How ridiculous. She was unswayable, untouchable. Stoic. Abby scowled angrily at herself. The way she had broken down for a boy that she hardly knew anymore. He could have been evil for all she knew.

Does that change the fact that he was a person? That at one time he was one of your best friends? No. Abby stared down at her hands, and nearly died of fright when her communicator went off. For a moment the teen stared at it blankly, before clicking it open and pressing one button. "What?"

There was a pause, as if that hadn't been what whoever was calling had expected. The voice of her second-in-command flooded onto the small device, clearly relieved. Abby could tell that much, despite the fact that it was terribly static-ridden. "Numbuh Five, oh God! Thank you! You're alright!"

"No thanks to you." Abby replied bitterly. Another pause.

"Oh, right, Rick didn't let us know you'd called." Darcy said, Abby could almost see her glaring at the team-member. "I'm so, so, so sorry Abby. We'll pick you up right away. We're reading the coordinates right now."

Abby laughed. Too little, too late. It was a bitter laugh, and she burst into tears again. "Is she crying?" Abby heard the youngest member of their team ask in surprise. Abby only cried a little harder. Dammit, dammit all to hell.

"Abby..." Darcy said, as if she wanted to reach through the small communicator and hold her, "Is...are you al-"

Suddenly the signal went dead, not before she heard a loud crashing noise. It fell completely silent and Abby blinked at it a moment staring at the small communicator. Frustration suddenly clawed at her, and even though she knew there would be no answer she rapidly pressed the buttons to call back. Nothing. Only static.

Laugh or cry, Abby actually doesn't know what to do. She thought, burying her face in her hands as despair took her. What had cut her team off? Dammit, what had happened? She hadn't realized that she even cared to be rescued. Why should she, when it was her fault that Hoagie died? Because the reason he even fell...was...was so that Abby could climb up. Abby won't let him die for nothing dammit. No. She refuses to.

The wind picked up suddenly, and her hat flew off of her head. Abby yelled and made a grab for it but it danced on the wind. Danced higher and higher until it finally vanished from sight. Abby stared after it a moment, feeling nothing for it's loss. Really could a hat compare to the life of her friend?


Charles

Charles was practically carried out of the treehouse by Cody. How undignified, he was a guy. Wasn't it his duty to protect girls? Not that he'd ever have the guts to say that to any of the girls in his sector. Uh, no thanks. He liked having his arms and legs. Cody tripped though, and he pitched forward with her. His glasses skittered onto the sidewalk, and he heard them crack as they did too.

"Ohhh..." Charles moaned, picking them up and looking at the ruined lense. "Oh, my dad is going to KILL me."

"Rick, I'm going to kill you!" Darcy screamed, from further down the sidewalk. She was covered in soot and as he looked at the burning treehouse and grimaced Charles remembered that most of their stuff was in there. Though that wasn't why Darcy wanted to kill Rick. Charles wanted to kill him too. They were so close to getting their leader rescued.

Then Rick had thrown some makeshift bomb at the console, it had been destroyed. Effectively cutting off the communication and starting the treehouse on fire. Their hosts weren't going to be particularly happy about THAT little fact, Charles was sure. Treehouses happened to be...rather flammable.

Rick was being attacked by both Darcy and Cody. "You ARE a traitor. Dammit what were you thinking? People are out there, lost, because of YOU. Our leader's life is in danger because of YOU." Cody looked furious. Charles staggered to his feet his mind whirring. Wait, wait, wait!

Something Rick had said was important. Something he said earlier. The boy narrowed his blue eyes and thought hard.

"You...you...you DICK!" Darcy screamed, "She's our friend!"

"That's just it! That's why!" Rick hollered, ducking under the blows. Oh he was bigger than any on the team but even he couldn't fight off two pissed off specially-trained-to-kick-adult-butt teenaged girls. "She wasn't our friend, she never gave any of us the time of day except to go on missions!"

"You're a DICK that's why she didn't like you! She was nice to me!" Darcy spat back, "She lost every one of her team-mates to decommissioning. They were one of the best teams in the entire KND, and you really expected her to be able to make friends easily? What world do you come from?"

"I lost all my team-mates TOO!" Rick shot back, furious. Charles's eyes narrowed further. What had he said...

"You'll be decommissioned immediately for treason." Cody snarled, "I'll make sure of it."

Suddenly it hit him. "That's it! Wait! Don't knock him out, don't decommission him for treason, just STOP!" Charles yelled, the girls stopped and stared at him in surprise. "We can't erase his memory, or risk damaging it. He has the last coordinates of wherever Abby was last! It's the closest shot we've got!"

"I don't remember it." Rick sneered, but he looked a little worried. Cody and Darcy instantly noticed. Both girls stood over the fallen teen and put their hands on their hips. Charles struggled with the urge to laugh at that. No, he had to follow through with this so the girls would understand where he was going.

"Oh?" Charles said, "Wasn't one of the reasons you were chosen for the TND because..."

"You have a photographic memory!" Cody and Darcy shouted at the same time. Rick scrambled to his feet and took off. Both girls stared at each other and leaped into action. Both screaming, "After him!"

"Wait!" Charles yelled, struggling to his feet. They took off and the shorter boy heaved a sigh of exhaustion. He shot an exasperated glance at the treehouse. That glance turned into gawking. The fire had gotten WAY worse. Smoke was beginning to fill in the sky. "Uh, guys! I don't know how to speak French, and we REALLY need somebody to call the fire department!"


XP

I love the snot out of Charles. -cuddles-

Oh, and in case you were wondering...

The anime that Cody was watching is called Case Closed. I love it, and am currently as obsessed with that as I am with KND. It's just so awesome.

Why do I love it you ask? Because I created Charles a long time ago, and watched that show. And as I watched it I was like ZOMFG that's my Charles! XP I decided to mention it in there in honor of Charles. So I like Case Closed because Conan/Jimmy reminds me a bit of Charles. :3

Charles's eyes were originally green, but then I realized that most of my OC's have green eyes. Weird. So I decided they'd be dark blue instead.

Reviews are, as always, much appreciated.