Falsely Accused
Summary: One night, after saving the day, Blossom passed out, and woke finding herself covered in blood. Later arrested for murder, what really happened that night? Not wishing to see pink Powerpuff fall, Brick commits the Rowdyruff Boys to help the Powerpuff Girls solve this mystery. Can they clear Blossom's name before it's too late? Or will it forever tarnish her reputation?
Disclaimer: I don't own the Powerpuff Girls. Rather, the Powerpuff Girls is owned by Craig McCracken and Cartoon Network.
Chapter 11
A Night to Remember
A. Preparations for the Evening
The City of Townsville…
It was supposed to cinch the case, but the linkage of the Harold Smith and Princess confused rather than clarified matters.
To Brick, the essential question was what was the link of the Smiths to Princess? He had hoped that they might have discovered something which might have clinched the link. Jason Smith might have been an employee of Morebucks, or a family member, or even an acquaintance. Instead, Jason Smith turned out to have nothing to do with Princess Morebucks or her family. With nothing in common, save a history with the Powerpuff Girls, Princess would never have associated with anyone as ordinary as the Smiths. And there was no evidence proving otherwise.
Blossom reached the same conclusions. She strained her mind for any history of contact, or collaboration, or even casual acquaintance between the Smiths and Princess. She could remember none. Not even to cooperate to destroy them.
Which made questions of plotting by the Smiths and Princess far-fetched.
Answers to these questions might have been answered had the Smiths been asked, but the family itself had moved out of town about six years ago, and no one knew where they have moved to, or where to start looking.
Still, Princess Morebucks, in Blossom's mind, probably was the one who blasted that hole in the Carmichael house, and presumably, the one who actually murdered the old lady. Yet even to that conclusion, there were nagging doubts. It isn't Princess' style to murder her chauffeur's mother. Blossom hoped that Brick could answer her doubts in their special investigation later in the evening.
Speaking of which, Blossom was in her room, unable to decide which dress to wear. It wasn't really a date, but she felt it might as well be. She didn't know why. She decided that she didn't really care about his opinion about her appearance, especially that he continued to call her 'ugly' to her face, but if that was so, why did she feel very pleased when he said, "you're less ugly than any other girl I know"? Does that mean he felt he was the most beautiful girl in the world? Surely not! Those words won't come out from Brick's mouth.
Did Brick care for her? His words say that he does not. Yet his actions indicate otherwise. Why else would he manipulate the law to cover up her "crime", and free her from jail? And why did he value her reputation so much? Why did he virtually shut her critics in school into silence and made her virtually into a goddess to the students? And why did he make those commercials that fed her vanity and turned her into an object of intense affection by the entire city?
And why does she care about it anyway? Why? She only regarded him as a friend. A misguided friend, but a close friend nonetheless, a useful ally, someone she could rely on. True, she liked his company, but don't friends like each other's company? He probably was the only one her age whom she could have an intelligent conversation with, and she didn't have to dumb down her words or explain further. That counted a lot in Blossom's book.
She owed him a lot! Her current reputation as the perfect embodiment of perfection among the average citizens (at least those who believed her) was entirely due to Brick's actions. How could she repay that? She tried to think of a way, but she could not think of anything.
But one thing's for sure. She would do something for Brick that would be equivalent to how he restored her reputation. But what?
She pushed all these confusing thoughts from her mind as she continued sampling various dresses. She never was comfortable in exposing skin, so she always dressed conservatively. Even while wearing short skirts, she always wore white tights or anything to cover her legs.
Finally, she found one. It was perfect. It was pink, of course. It was long, reaching to her calves, halfway between her knees and ankles, but loose enough to walk fast or even run and kick. It was elegant, and she concluded, formal enough for whatever it was Brick was taking her.
Happy with her choice, she quickly showered, and dressed. As she was putting on the final touches, the door suddenly opened, and Bubbles entered, dressed casually, compared to Blossom at lease, in a blue sweatshirt over a blue t-shirt, and blue jean skirt that reached to her knees.
"Blossom! Why are you getting all dressed up?" asked Bubbles.
"Brick is picking me up in half an hour," said Blossom, looking at the clock, which read 5:30.
"Ooh! You're going on a date with your counterpart too?" asked Bubbles excitedly.
"No! Not a date! We're going on a special investigation!" Blossom replied as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Brick said that he already cracked the case, and that he would need to show it to me, rather than just tell. And he said we're going to some place that needed a dress code. Then we'll eat dinner after all of that."
"Oh, so you're going on a date and just calling it something else? That's cool!" said Bubbles. "Boomer will pick me up too at six. We're going to Townsville Fair! I've been waiting for this for months!"
"Bubbles, for the last time, it's a special investigation, not a date," said Blossom as she put on her earrings. "Brick would never ask me out on a date. Anyway, I hope you and Boomer have fun!"
"Hey Red, where's—" Buttercup said but stopped as she entered the room.
"Buttercup, Blossom is going out with Brick!" Bubbles practically squealed in delight. "Brick and Blossom are going on a date—sorry, a special investigation!" She said the last two words with air quotes as she giggled.
"Oh shut up! It's nothing like what you're thinking!" Blossom defended. "We're gonna solve this mystery, not act like love struck fools!"
"You two are out on dates with your counterparts, huh?" Buttercup asked.
"I'm not going on a date with Brick!" Blossom repeated. "It's a special investigation!"
Suddenly, Buttercup felt very jealous. "Right," she said, looking at her two sisters as they fussed over their appearance and kept looking at the clock. Why was she feeling so empty when Blossom and Bubbles were going out with their counterparts while she was watching wrestling at home? After all, she didn't care about dating one bit. It was too girlish to her taste. But she was envious. Very envious. Why? She had no idea.
Suddenly, the door bell rang. Bubbles looked at the window. "Oh it's them! We're not ready! Buttercup, let them in and—"
"I hear ya," Buttercup said before going downstairs. She opened the door to reveal Boomer, nervous, fidgety, dressed casually in a blue jacket, blue t-shirt, and blue jeans, while Brick was wearing a grey suit with matching fedora hat, with a bright red tie, confidence radiating from him even if his face was mostly neutral.
Buttercup looked at them and felt a twinge of disappointment that there were only two of them. "Come in and wait," she merely said while gesturing towards the couch in the living room.
Brick was deep in thought as he and his brother sat on the couch. The afternoon was fruitful. He had been to several places, and asked many questions, and as a result, had garnered so much information that he was excited to tell Blossom. But only at the right moment. He was putting the final touches of what he will say and do. He hoped that it would dazzle Blossom sufficiently to put his plan in motion.
He had planned every detail meticulously. Even if he did not get everything he wanted on this night, he would lay the foundations of getting it in the end. Blossom would not stand a chance. He put his hand on his coat pocket to make sure that the papers in it were still there. He kept fiddling with his hat as he recited the order of things he intended to do. It was a masterpiece of planning, and hopefully, of execution.
Boomer was happier than the day before. Brick had given him money. In fact, too much money. From the one hundred thousand dollars Brick got from the bank, he had been given $10,000 to spend however he liked for the date with Bubbles. Most of it he kept in his room. He only had ten hundred dollar bills, about a thousand dollars in total, but he knew it would be more than enough.
He himself had been eager to go to the fair. Even if he had to go alone, he would be happy to attend the opening of something he was looking forward to for a long time. Going with Bubbles was certainly more than icing to the cake. He knew Bubbles too was eager, and it pleased him that he could make her so happy. He was already thinking of what they were going to do inside the fair.
A few minutes later, he heard a swoosh, saw a blue streak and suddenly Bubbles appeared before the two boys.
Bubbles presented herself. "Well Boomie?"
"Um, well what?" the blue ruff asked as he stood up.
"How do I look, silly?" she giggled.
Without even thinking, he opened his mouth and said, "Very pretty," he said before he could stop himself.
Bubbles blushed, "Thank you. You're not bad looking yourself!" she said before grabbing his hand and pulling him to the door.
Buttercup was standing beside the door. "You better make sure nothing happens to her, or you're going to answer to me!" she warned.
"Oh silly Buttercup!" Bubbles chirped as the two blonds left. "Nothing's gonna happen!"
Brick just shook his head as he waited. Finally, a minute later, Blossom went down. She went down slowly, in a grand manner, trying to impress Brick. But Brick was slumped on the couch, his eyes closed, in deep thought, that he didn't even notice her until she was right in front of him.
"Ahem!" Brick heard, and he opened his eyes to see her in front of him. She was very pretty, he conceded. Very beautiful indeed. His eyes widened and he had a hard time tearing her gaze away from her. But he wasn't about to say it.
Blossom carefully looked at his reaction. She knew him well, and the fact that his eyes couldn't resist looking at her pleased her so much. No matter what he says, he can't deny it now. She was beautiful.
"About time you finished," he said, looking at his watch. It was exactly six in the evening. He stood up, and in a gentlemanly manner, offered his arm. Blossom surprised by the gesture, took it, and they walked out.
"You better make sure nothing happens to her, Brick" Buttercup warned.
"Happens to her? Buttercup, your sister could destroy the moon if she wanted to. What could ever even harm a hair on her head?" Brick said as they left.
"So how will this so called special investigation go?" asked Blossom.
"I hope it would turn out good," Brick said as he recited again the things he would say in his mind.
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B. Bubbles and Boomer at the Fair
As soon as they were out of the house, Boomer began to fly, but Bubbles tugged, pulling him back to earth.
"Boomer, the Fair won't open for another half hour. Why don't we walk and enjoy the view?" the blonde girl asked.
"If you say so," Boomer said, landing besides her. It was an hour till sunset, and the late afternoon was beautiful. The trees and plants were beginning to sprout their leaves, the spring flowers were in full bloom, the rays of the sun as it approached the horizon warmed the scene, and a slow cool breeze made it the perfect time to walk.
"Remember the first time we went on a date?" Bubbles asked.
"How could I forget!? We were, six at that time, right? And we weren't supposed to go on a date that time too!"
"Yep! I only wanted to go to the amusement park, so I asked the Professor to take me, but he was too busy, so I asked my sister," Bubbles continued. "Turns out Blossom decided that we should go out together so she could command you or some other reason, so she told everyone else not to take me, and called Brick and told him to tell you to take me!"
"Yeah. Boy was that embarrassing," Boomer remember, laughing. "I didn't want to go at first, but Brick blackmailed me into asking you, and well, you know the rest! It wasn't too bad, but the others had to spoil it."
"I remember. Buttercup and Butch decided to teach our leaders a lesson on interfering with our lives, they got Blossom, but Brick was missing, so they had to kidnap me to get you to find Brick, only you can't find him, and you thought I was really kidnapped by bad guys!"
"Don't remind me. It was so obvious that it was them, yet I thought it was someone else," Boomer said, laughing. [1]
They reminisced of old times, laughing at funny moments, teasing each other, telling each other jokes or tall tales. They talked about their siblings too.
"I feel sorry for Buttercup, all alone," said Bubbles. "She acts like it was nothing. But I can see it in her eyes. She was envious. How about Butch?"
"He called me a love struck fool, and Brick a slave to Blossom, and said that he was tougher than both of us and won't be a weakling and fall for your wiles," said Boomer, imitating Butch's voice.
"What's the limo for?" asked Bubbles, remembering the vehicle she saw in the front of her house.
"Oh that. Brick claims it was for the so called 'special investigation' that would help in solving the case," said Boomer. "You know, I'm going to bet that you won't guess who's the chauffeur."
"Um, who?"
"Frank Carmichael!"
"Him? But I thought he worked for Princess?"
"He still does. But Mr Morebucks gave him the rest of the month off to help him get over his loss," said Boomer. "Princess wasn't too happy, but what can she do? This afternoon, Brick asked Frank to 'help him solve the case'. You know how persuasive he could be."
"Does your brother like Blossom?"
Boomer scoffed. "If he does, he would never tell anyone," he replied.
"But he did all those nice things for her," Bubbles insisted.
"True. And I think deep inside him, he likes her too, but he would never admit it, even to himself!" Boomer said.
There was a long line to the gate of the fair. Boomer and Bubbles proceeded to the back of the line.
"Hey, you're Boomer of the Rowdyruff Boys and Bubbles of the Powerpuff Girls!" the person right in front of them said.
"Yeah, we are," Boomer politely answered.
"You could go in front me," said the man stepping aside. "It's the least I can do for two of our superheroes. Could I also have your autograph?"
"Really, you don't need to," said Bubbles as she got the paper and pen from the man and signed her name, then passed it to Boomer who signed it.
"But I insist. I'm really sorry for thinking that your sister Blossom did it. This is my way to say I'm sorry," he said as he walked behind the two.
The commotion alerted the woman in front of the man. She had two children with her. "Boomer, Bubbles!" her son said. "Could we have your autograph?"
"Why yes," Bubbles said sweetly as she took another piece of paper and pen and signed.
"Oh please, go right ahead of me," the woman said.
"But why? We're here first!" her five year old daughter pointed out.
"Hush Eliza. They are superheroes. They saved my life, and yours, countless times. They deserve to be in front," she said as she led them behind the blues.
And it happened throughout the line. Despite Bubbles and Boomer's efforts, they signed the autographs for many more people and soon found themselves at the very front, just outside the gate, despite a hundred people getting there first.
So Bubbles and Boomer were the very first to enter Townsville Fair. There were lots of booths, but Boomer decided to go to one of the high striker strength tester games. He got the hammer, but lightly tapped the lever. It was enough to shoot the puck into the bell, and to knock the bell and the puck high into the sky.
"Oh you're so strong, my hero!" Bubbles cooed at Boomer's show of strength, although both knew Bubbles could easily have done the same.
Boomer was handed a giant stuffed animal, a bear, and gave it to Bubbles. "For you, my fair lady," he said with a smile.
"Oh he's so cute!" Bubbles said, grabbing the stuffed brown bear before giving him another peck in the cheek. "And he looks so strong too! I know, I'm going to name you Boomer!"
"How I am going to know if you're calling me or your teddy bear?" Boomer laughed.
They then went to a shooting gallery. Boomer got the pellet rifle, and aimed it at the moving ducks. With skill, he shot down every one of them.
"Oh those poor ducks!" Bubbles said as she watched.
"They're not real," Boomer said as he handed the prize, another stuffed animal, a lion, to Bubbles.
"Thank you Boomie! He's beautiful! I'm going to name you, um, Butch!"
"I don't think the real Butch will like that," Boomer remarked as they walked around more, signing autographs from fans along the way.
"I know! Let's go to the ferris wheel!" Bubbles said.
"I don't know. I understand the thrill if we're ordinary, but we fly higher than the highest point of that ferris wheel every day! What's the point?" he asked.
"Please! I really want to!" said Bubbles.
"Oh why not! It might be fun!" he said as he got two tickets for the ride. Like before, there was a long line, but the people in front gave way to the superheroes.
Even though the two didn't experience the same thrill that ordinary humans did in a ferris wheel, they enjoyed it nonetheless. It was fun being moved around up and down without any effort on their part at all. "Look, we're at the top! No, we're going down again!" Bubbles said as she clutched the stuffed lion, while Boomer held the stuffed bear.
"Where do you want to go to next?" asked the blond boy after the ride.
"How about the roller coaster?"
"Promise me you won't die of a heart attack if we go there?" Boomer joked.
"Oh Boomer—I think I better put these back home," she said, referring to the stuffed animals. "I'll be back in a minute! Don't go anywhere!"
With that, Bubbles suddenly flew up in the air in the direction of their house.
Boomer watched. He really did had fun with the blue puff. And true to her words, in exactly a minute, Bubbles was back besides him. "Let's go to the roller coaster!" she proclaimed as she grabbed his hand and went to the line. Like before, the people before them readily let them cut the line and they soon found themselves seated on the very front seat.
Bubbles screamed in joy as the ride went up and down and in loops. She wasn't really scared or thrilled like the others, but she shouted along anyway with the other passengers. Boomer got amused at seeing the humans behind getting scared, or even peeing themselves in fright. He shouted, not because he we shared the same emotions as the other passengers, but it was fun shouting and yelling.
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C. Start of the Special Investigation
Brick led Blossom out of their house, where the first thing she noticed was the limousine that was parked in front of their house. She was surprised to see Frank Carmichael, Princess' chauffeur, holding the limo door open.
"I thought he was working with Princess?" Blossom asked as they entered.
"He's on leave," Brick whispered. "He agreed to help us solve the mystery."
"Oh. So this really is an investigation?" asked Blossom.
"Of course. What do you think this really is?"
"Nothing," Blossom replied, a twinge of disappointment felt, but she suppressed it. "So where are we going?"
"The movie theatre. Pines Theatre, to be exact," said Brick. "We're going to watch the start of the movie, 2012! Care to see what the Mayans predicted?"
"What? We can't go there! I'm overdressed!" Blossom complained. "And I already watched that movie!"
"But you see, this was how Princess dressed when she went to watch Transformers the night Carmichael was murdered," Brick replied. "We are going to re-enact what she did that night, and I will show you how she did it! And did you know that this is the same limousine Princess used when she went to the movie theatre?"
Blossom can't help but be impressed by Brick's preparations. "You thought of everything!" she remarked.
Brick merely smiled.
When they arrived at the movie theatre, Brick and Blossom went to the ticket booth. They looked at the teen-aged boy, about 19, with a nametag, "Jack" written on it.
"You're Jack Thorton, right?" Brick asked.
"Yes sir," he said. He immediately recognized the two, so he acted respectfully to the two superheroes.
"You were here about a week ago?" he asked.
"Well, not exactly. I worked the night shift," Thorton replied.
"You remember Princess Morebucks?" asked Brick
"Who?"
"Oh this girl," Brick replied, showing him a picture of Princess. "She was wearing something like Blossom."
The teen at the ticket booth looked at the picture and nodded. "Yeah, I remember her," he said.
"And you stamped this ticket?" asked Brick, showing Princess' movie ticket, stamped at 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. the next day.
"Yeah," he said. "Very peculiar."
"Oh I'll have two tickets please, one for me and one for Blossom," Brick said.
He observed as Jack took two tickets, tore it in half, gave one half to Brick and Blossom, and kept the other in a pile, to be counted later.
"Could you stamp the time here, please?" Brick asked. He then gave fifteen dollars to him to stamp it.
Thorton did as asked. He stamped it "6:30 p.m." using a special stamp.
"Do you usually stamp the time on the tickets?" asked the ruff.
"No. That's why Princess' request was unusual. Why would she do that?" he asked. "This time stamp is usually used for other things, not to give the time on the ticket. So when she offered ten dollars for me to stamp, well, I was stumped, but I would be a fool to turn down the cash!"
"Thank you," said Brick as the two superheroes entered the movie theatre.
"Brick, we already know that!" said Blossom. "Boomer already told us!"
"Yup. But it's different knowing it for yourself. And Boomer didn't tell us that Princess paid extra for her ticket to be time stamped, right? Why bother with time stamping the tickets?"
"To give proof that she was here between ten p.m. and two a.m. But why?"
"Because she wasn't here," said Brick as they entered the auditorium. As they walked, they encountered other movie goers, and they had to sign autographs. They selected a seat in the middle, and waited for the movie to start.
There were a lot of previews for other movies before the feature presentation, so Brick explained what he planned to do.
"Blossom, at the start of the main movie, I will go and excuse myself. You will wait for me, but after five minutes, you would excuse yourself and go to the restroom," said Brick
"What are you planning?" she asked, curious.
"You'll see," he whispered.
It took thirty minutes for all the previews to be over, and Brick waited until fifteen minutes into the movie before excusing himself.
Blossom duly noted his departure, and five minutes later, she stood up, and went to the ladies room. As she left the ladies room, she was grabbed by the hand. It was Brick.
"Be quiet," Brick instructed as silently as he could, "and follow me."
They walked back to the movie auditorium. It was dark, and the attention of the people was on the movie. The walls were covered by a curtain that reached to the floor, and Brick went behind the curtain. Blossom followed.
She saw Brick slightly open a door—a door that looked like a section of the wall, behind the curtain, leading them into an empty room. It was dark, but it was slightly illuminated by a red ball of light from Brick's energy ball. She saw his counterpart climb on a spiral staircase at the end of the room.
"We're in the second floor, above the movie theatre," Brick said when they reached the top.
He then walked to the opposite wall, where there was a 'fire exit' door. They used that to go outside, into the empty backyard of the theatre.
"See, we were able to sneak out of the theatre even when we're conspicuous because of our attire and who we are," Brick said, "without anyone noticing us. This is how Princess was able to sneak out of the theater!"
"Brilliant!" Blossom said. "How'd you discover it?"
"I looked for it," said Brick. "And I asked questions."
"So where do we go from here?" she asked.
"Be quiet and follow me," Brick said, and they stealthily walked towards the parking lot. The theatre parking lot was located besides the building. They quickly spotted the limousine. Mr Carmichael had earphones on his ears—his eyes were closed, his mind fully concentrated on the music.
Brick took a key from his pocket, and quietly opened the trunk of the car at the back. He quickly grabbed something, and quietly closed it again.
They then walked away.
"See? I was able to grab it without Mr Carmichael knowing. And he's awake. How much easier would it be for Princess if he was asleep?" Brick asked as they returned.
"Very good," Blossom said as she saw the experiment. It was the rocket launcher from Princess. "You placed it there before picking me up?"
"Yeah," said Brick as he returned rocket launcher to trunk of the limo. He then grabbed her hand and began walking out of the parking lot.
"Having fun?" asked Brick with a wide grin on his face.
Blossom was surprised at the gesture but didn't resist it as they walked stealthily. "Yeah. This is fun, all this sneaking around," said Blossom, and Brick wasn't sure if she was sarcastic or not. "Where are we going?"
"Hungry?" asked Brick.
"Are you going to take me out to dinner? Or are we gonna chase around for clues while being overdressed?"
"Fear not, Blossom! All the time you spent choosing your outfit won't be in vain," said Brick.
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D. Second Floor Reservation
They went to La Fancy Restaurant.
"Do you have any reservations?" asked the maître d' or headwaiter of the restaurant.
"Oh yes. The name's William Bricker Edwards and Blossom Utonium," the ruff leader said.
The headwaiter checked his list. "Oh yes. You're the red Rowdyruff and the pink Powerpuff. It's an honor to have you two dine here."
"Oh it is we who are honoured in dining in this fine restaurant," Blossom added.
"Thank you," the headwaiter said. "Follow me." With that, he led the two to their tables. Blossom was surprised when he led them to a staircase leading to a door. He opened it, and they entered the second floor. In contrast to the first floor, there were fewer tables. In the middle was a rectangular table, with chairs on either side. The chairs had soft cushions, and the table cloth was of the finest silks. The windows were closed, and the curtains covered the windows. The chandelier gave a soft glowing yellow light.
They sat on the middle rectangular table. Both Brick and Blossom gave their orders to the waiter.
"Remember, no one should come here at all until I give the signal. And I mean no one, ya hear?" Brick warned.
"Your wish is our command, sir," said the headwaiter. "You just press the red button, and we'll come. But if you don't, not even a raging fire would make us come." In the middle of the table, covered in glass, was a small red button.
As the waiter went down, Brick asked, "So what do you think, Blossom?"
"What can I say? This is amazing. I really enjoyed it so far. Still, I have a question. All this has got to cost a lot of money. Are you going to again make the city pay for this?"
"I'm paying for this with cash," said Brick. But he didn't tell Blossom where he got the cash. Blossom simply assumed that Dr Edwards gave him the money.
"That's the beauty of this restaurant. With enough money, you can get an entire floor all for yourself! And if they come up without any signal from us, we get a 50% discount! This really gives us all the privacy we need, don't you think?"
"Why Brick, whatever do you need all this privacy for?" Blossom said coyly.
"Well, this is where Princess went after she sneaked out of the movie theatre," Brick revealed.
"What? How did you know that?" Blossom asked at this news.
"Oh it's really simple. Early this afternoon, after lunch, I went to the bank of Mr Morebucks, and I got a hold a record of their credit card transactions, as well as all other bank transactions involving Princess. Looking at the records, I learned that she spent a large amount of money on this restaurant, at about one thirty in the morning, on the night Mrs Carmichael got murdered," Brick revealed. He then looked for something under the table, and finally, he showed Blossom a briefcase. "I left this here when I made the reservation. It would be awkward carrying this in the movie theatre." He opened it, and got several documents.
"This is Princess Morebucks' credit card statement," he said, "and if you look at the entry of April 6, you would see that La Fancy Restaurant charged a large amount. About $3,000. Now, the only thing that is expensive enough to justify that amount is if you reserve an entire floor for your privacy."
"Very nice work. But wouldn't that mean that Princess has a good alibi? Wouldn't it blow the theory that Princess killed Mrs Carmichael if she was here?"
"True. But I have an answer to that," said Brick. "But first, more evidence! Look at the bank statement. More than a week before the murder, there was a withdrawal of five million dollars!"
Blossom took the bank statement from Brick's hand and examined it. "It's true!"
"You know what that means?"
"Boomer and Bubbles interviewed Mr Turner, the boss of those thieves I busted. They said that Mr Watts offered to pay them five million dollars, with one million down payment immediately," Blossom said, analysing the clues. "It happened a few days after the withdrawal of five million dollars from her bank. That means that Princess most likely paid Mr Turner, well, she gave the money to Mr Watts who gave it to Turner to rob F.F.F. Jewelry shop! We can bust Princess for this even if we had no evidence of her doing the actual murder."
"True, but I am confident that I can pin her for the murder!"
"Wait a minute. I know that Princess gave the money, and you know too. But we need something more definite. She could say it's just a coincidence!"
"We need Bill Watts. But who is he? The only thing we know about him is that he six feet tall, has black hair and has a beard. I suspect there is no one named Bill Watts. You searched for his name at the archives after you found the Harold Smith connection to Fleetwood, and you found nothing about Watts, right?"
"Nothing at all," said Blossom.
"He's someone else, and I suspect the beard is fake," said Brick. "And guess what? There's another coincidence that you might find interesting."
"What?" asked Blossom.
"I also went to the police station to check for Princess' Files. Of course, she was acquitted of all charges, but they still retained a record. Guess what? Princess was arrested several times with things unrelated to being a villain. You know what she was arrested for?"
"Several financial schemes that turned out to be illegal?" asked Blossom.
"Exactly. Guess who the investigating officer is?" asked Brick.
"Who?"
"Lieutenant John Sanchez! I talked to him afterwards. It seems the reason the case got dismissed was that Mr Morebucks intervened and the case was dropped. You know the funny thing about it? Princess actually tried to steal money from her father. But Mr Morebucks didn't even ask what Princess did to get arrested. He simply pulled strings, got Princess free, and never found out."
"First he was the one who handled my case and announced to the world that I was the murderer," said Blossom, thinking. "Then he was the one who actually destroyed the weapons captured from Mojo, including DICCX and the rocket launcher. Then he was the one who handled the embezzlement case against Jason Smith, who got acquitted. And then he handled this latest one on Princess, which never even reached court? Wow! Talk about coincidence."
"And talk about incompetence!" Brick said as the waiters carrying trays of food returned.
"Is that all?" asked the head waiter as soon as his assistants put the food on the table.
Brick looked at all the delicious food. His mouth was already watering, but he resisted the urge. Instead he turned to the waiter. "For me, yes. How about you, Blossom?"
"Everything's here," said Blossom as she spied some of her favourite food on the table.
"Oh could we talk to you, privately, of course?" asked Brick.
"Certainly," the head waiter said. He then gestured for his assistants to leave.
"Mr Green," Brick began, looking at the waiter's name tag, "Princess ate here about a week ago?"
"That is true, sir."
"She rented this floor, right?"
"That is true."
"What time was she here?"
"She arrived about half past eleven, and left about half past one."
"So she was here alone from 11:30 to 1:30," Blossom said more to herself than to the headwaiter.
"She wasn't alone," said Mr Green. "There was a boy her age."
"What?" asked Brick in shocked as he looked at the waiter. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. He arrived a few minutes after Princess," said the headwaiter.
"This is good," said Blossom. "What's his name? Surely he was part of the reservation?"
"Joe Brown."
"There must hundreds of people name Joe Brown here in this city," Brick muttered. "What does he look like?"
"About your age, brown hair, dark eyes, wore a suit with a blue tie," he described.
"Oh and did any of them call you while they dined?" asked Blossom.
"No."
"Oh. What time did you deliver the food here?" she followed up.
"About 11:50 p.m."
"And what time did you see her and her date again?" asked Blossom.
"About 1:15 a.m., when it was time to pay the bill."
"So you didn't see them between 11:50 and 1:15 at all?"
"No."
"And you didn't hear anything, or detect any sign that they were there the entire time?"
"No. But they didn't come down during the entire time, so they were there. I would have known if any of them came down the stairs."
"Thank you," Brick said as Blossom finished her line of inquiry. Even as the headwaiter was going down the stairs, he dug into his food as his mind processed the information.
"So Brick, how does this all fit into your theory?"
"To tell you the truth, this is the first time I heard that she was with a boy," said Brick. "I mean when Bubbles said that, I didn't believe her, but now, apparently, she was right!"
"Bubbles does has a knack of being right, hasn't she?" Blossom pondered as they ate. "So you consider the case solved?"
"Not 100%, but I am confident I can get at the truth," said Brick. "Whatever this Joe Brown leads us too, I am confident that Princess was involved, and more likely than not, was the one who killed Mrs Carmichael."
"But how can that be? She was here the entire time!" Blossom argued.
"But nobody saw her here from 11:50 to 1:15. She could have left here after all the waiters went down, and returned here before 1:15 to give the impression she was here all the time," said Brick.
"That's ridiculous! What about the boy? Was he involved too?"
"Probably an accomplice!"
"He is thirteen years old! You can't possibly believe that he killed her!"
"Not killed! Helped her do the deed! Or maybe he simply waited here while Princess went out and did the deed."
"So how did she leave? I mean, she can't go down without attracting attention," Blossom argued.
"You'll see," said Brick as he continued eating.
It was about eight o'clock when they finally finished eating. He told Blossom not to call for the waiters.
"Not yet," he said. "I have something to show you."
Blossom looked at him curiously.
"Be quiet," said Brick as he stood up as quietly as he could, "and follow me."
He led her to the small corridor leading to the restrooms. Besides it was a door marked, FIRE EXIT. He opened it, and the two descended to the ground below.
"See how easy it is to sneak out of this restaurant without them knowing?" asked Brick.
"But why would they let customers sneak out? How do they know they won't just skedaddle without paying? I mean I'm sure the staff downstairs don't know we're here."
"They don't need to. They have Princess' name and address, and likewise, mine too," said Brick. "They don't issue such rooms and such privacy to a stranger."
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E. More Bubbles and Boomer
Bubbles and Boomer were at the back row in a makeshift movie theatre. The theatre was simply a tent and a white board at one end and a movie projector at another. It was a horror movie.
Several times, Bubbles screamed as she saw monsters and zombies appear on the screen, and she buried her head on Boomer's chest when there was something scary on TV. Boomer himself was perplexed at her behaviour. It wasn't real, and aren't some of the monsters Bubbles dispatched before scarier and more dangerous than the one she saw on screen? Still, it wasn't an unpleasant situation when she hugged him closer the scarier the movie got. He himself resisted the urge to laugh at the cheap special effects of the so called "blockbuster".
After the movie, Boomer got Bubbles' hand and gently led her up until they were hovering in the dark sky over the fair. They could see all the people, and they could see the colourful rides and the beautiful lights.
"What do you think?" asked the blond boy.
Bubbles and her sisters still had curfews, so she had very little opportunity to see such sights at night. "It's beautiful," she said as she leaned on him. He wrapped his hand around her waist as they flew higher so that they could have privacy.
"What do you want to do?" asked Bubbles as she sighed contentedly.
"Whatever you want to," he replied as his fingers caressed her hair.
"I don't know. I'm so happy, I'm so contended. Thank you," she said looking at him.
Boomer looked at Bubbles, so beautiful, so good, that he could not tear his gaze away from her. He did not know what he was doing, but do it he did. He wrapped his hand around her, and gently kissed her in the lips.
Bubbles was surprised, as her eyes widened at first, then closed as she revelled in the sensation.
Suddenly, Boomer broke it and suddenly let go of her as if he committed a sin. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know what I was doing," he said, trying to find the words. "I should've asked you and it's just that I can't help myself and—"
Bubbles blushed but manage to say softly, "It's okay. I, I really like that. I've been waiting for you to do that for the past seven years," she said without thinking.
"Do you like it? Do you like to do it again, because I really liked it too," Boomer shyly said, blushing more as he realized what just came out of his mouth.
When she only stared at him, he said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed, I mean, please, I didn't mean," he said nervously, feeling that he gone too far.
But Bubbles simply closed the gap between the two, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him back.
However, they heard a loud explosion below, and suddenly, a rocket collided with the two blues.
"What the?" Boomer said as he broke the kiss and flew out of the cloud, followed by Bubbles.
There were robots attacking the Fair, and there were screaming people running in all directions.
"Pops!" Boomer mouthed as he flew down to see who was responsible.
Several robots attacked him, but he easily disposed of it. However, he saw other robots attack some of the screaming and running people.
"Bubbles!" Boomer shouted, pointing to them before charging more robots before him.
Bubbles nodded before going in to grab some people just before laser and rockets hit the place they were standing. She then placed them on a safe distant place before joining Boomer.
These robots, for some reason, were tougher. Boomer gave one his toughest punch, and to his surprise, he only made a tiny dent.
"Oh my God! These ones are way tougher than the last ones!" he shouted as Bubbles went besides her.
Suddenly, the robots fired lasers at them. They blocked it, but after that, they discovered, to their horror, that their watches were destroyed.
"Now you can't call for your brothers and sisters!" a voice shouted as a figure emerged from all the smoke.
"Princess!" Bubbles gasped.
"That's right! You think you can just barge in my house, rough me up, hurt me, beat me up in front of my butler and force me to show my lab to you? Do you have any idea how humiliating that was to me?" Princess shouted with genuine anger. "I HATE YOU AND YOU WILL DIE!"
"But that's not all! You then turned the entire school against me! All my friends! All my so-called friends! Deserted me after Mojo attacked our school! They all changed their minds, or pretended to, because your brother changed their minds about Blossom! I thought that it would be paradise when all the school hated your sister, but when I finally got there, they all worship her, even my friends!" Princess continued.
"Then the entire town. Not everyone, but that TV ad you did sickened me. Then I heard you, Bubbles, shout that you and Boomer will go here, so I decided to get my revenge!"
Suddenly, the robots, about ten of them, attacked Boomer. It punched him in the face, and to his surprise, it hurt, and threw him to the far side of the Fair.
"Boomie!" Bubbles shouted before she too received a kick on the stomach that sent her crashing into the pavement.
"So your robot's tough! Big deal!" Boomer shouted as he righted himself and used his laser eyes on one robot. However, the robot fired laser from his eyes and met Boomer's. Soon, the two were engaged in a laser tug of war.
Unfortunately, there were more than one robot, and one of them went to his side and attacked him with laser from its arms. It hit Boomer, and he screamed as pain engulfed his body. It weakened his laser eyes, and the laser of the robot in front of him continued on and hit him in front.
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Meanwhile…
Just as Boomer attacked with laser one robot, another hurled itself and punched Bubbles in the face as she stood up from the pavement. Blood oozed out from her lip as she threw a laser ball at her attacker. The ball hit the robot attacking her from the front, temporarily stopping it but she did not notice another robot from her right side throw a powerful laser beam from its arms, hitting her head on. She screamed as pain seared through her side, but there was no let on as the robot in front of her resumed its attack and gave her a kick which sent her flying high into the sky.
Where another robot was waiting. It clasped its hands and hit her head in a downward punch as she accelerated upward, and fell to the ground bloody and dirty.
She emerged from the rubble, proud, defiant, but weak, as she suddenly screamed her sonic voice. However, before she could do damage, a robot from behind her suddenly punched the back of her head, and she slumped into a merciful unconsciousness.
At the same time, Boomer was hit by the beams from the two robots in front of him and at the side. Barely able to stand, he saw what happened to Bubbles. "Bubbles!" he shouted as she fell, but before he could do anything else, one robot grabbed his right hand, another his left.
He tried to break free, but the grip was too strong. His struggles were soon ended when a fist of another robot hit the back of his head very strongly, and he blacked out.
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F. To Rule the City
"I haven't been entirely honest with you. I have other reasons why I took you out for dinner," said Brick, looking at Blossom's eyes.
Blossom's heart skipped as she waited for him to continue.
"You will ask me to give up all of his power when we solve this case, right? Or at least until the next month, when you become my leader," he said.
Blossom felt a bit a disappointment at the topic. "Well, I suppose I should ask you to give it up. We're just students, thirteen year olds, and you're telling me that we could rule this city absolutely?"
"Blossom, we're not thirteen. Biologically, we maybe that old, but technically, you're eight years old, and I'm seven. That's how long it's been since we've been created," Brick said. "But that's not the point. I want to rule the city, and I don't want to return to the way we have been. It's not right that this city could just trample us. Whether you like it or not, the city and we in particular, have changed. We just can't turn back the clock."
Brick then took Blossom's hand, and gently lifted himself in the air, with Blossom looking at him, floating with him.
When they are in sufficient height, they could see the entire city. "Look at that. The City of Townsville. Our home," he said. "Look at you. Blossom Utonium. The key to this city. The hero, and the best damn leader the world has ever seen, next to me. And I meant that. You really are that great, Blossom."
Blossom's heart fluttered as she heard the complement. She continued to listen in silence as she stared at the lights of the city, the tiny people doing about their business.
"I want to rule them. If not now, then sometime in the future. Because the city deserves the best leadership, and who if not the two of us could provide it? Right now, I rule it, but I want you to share it. I want you to rule it with me. I cannot do it alone. They look up to you. They worship you. They will follow you," he continued.
"Brick, I don't think it's right for us," Blossom mouthed as she moved towards Brick, gently squeezing his hand.
"Blossom, how much do you want to do for this city?" asked Brick.
"Oh only so much. I want to reroute traffic to lessen congestion. I want to pass new laws rationalizing garbage collections. I want to increase funding for the arts and the sciences. I want to increase the salary of the police so that they won't be tempted by bribes. I want to change the law in the city so that Mojo and Princess don't always get released. I want to tax Mr Morebucks because of what he and his daughter had done in the past. All those things I dream of doing," said Blossom. "And many more things."
"Why didn't you ask Ms Bellum and the Mayor to do these things?" asked Brick.
"I did, but they said that I was just a little girl who should just save the day, and leave politics to them," said Blossom. "That I don't understand why things are the way they are. They basically said I shouldn't meddle. But I do understand those things. I spent a lot of time analysing the problems of this city, and most of what I want to happen is reasonable, and can be implemented with everybody gaining and very few being hurt."
"Why don't you demand that they do all those things right now?" asked Brick.
"Because I don't want to get what I want by intimidation, because that's what it would amount to," Blossom said exasperatedly.
"But you care for the city, and despite their good intentions, the Mayor and Ms Bellum sometimes can be blind. If you can't open their eyes by reasoned argument, sometimes, you just have to use force to get what you want. Listen, Blossom, I am not asking you to beat them up or something like that or to commit illegal acts. No. I want you to go there and ask them nicely, and if not, then remind them that legally, we can take over and implement those things yourself. It's all within the law, and they can't do anything to stop you."
"I don't know. It seems wrong to do it that way. I want to help better the world but not that way," she replied.
"Blossom, please, just try it. You can always undo it if you want to. If you find it distasteful, then I would give up and drop all of this."
"What do you mean to give it up?"
"What I mean is that if you just try it, and you don't like it, then I promise you that I will give up all that I have achieved this month, I will tear these laws, and we will be as normal as we were before the entire thing started," Brick offered.
"You are willing to give it all up just so I could try it?" asked Blossom.
"Yes. For you, I am willing to give it all up," said Brick.
"But why?"
"Because I cannot have all that if you don't have it too. You are great Blossom, but I want you to realize that you can be greater, that you can accomplish so much while so young. History books has already a place for us, but a greater place is for you, if you just seize it," he said.
"And if I do like it, what will you do?" asked Blossom.
"It's up to you," said Brick. "But what I want is that we rule this city together, just as we share leadership of the Ruff Puff Alliance."
Blossom gazed at the city below them, then at her counterpart. He was gazing at the city, but his eyes show deep thought. "Blossom," he started as he turned to look at her. He grabbed her hand, and began to fly away from the city in a moderate speed.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"I have no idea," he said as he aimlessly flew around the countryside.
For the next half hour or so, they just flew around, hand in hand, talking occasionally. "I sometimes fly around in the dark," he said. "I find it particularly relaxing. Do you like it?"
"Yes. This is so much fun," she said as she stared at the farms below.
"I can actually see your house from here, and my house too," he said, pointing at a distant light. "It's only a speck of light, but you can see it. Can you see it too?"
She nodded.
They went around the state. They went to Citiesville, where Brick took her to a Natural History museum still open at that hour. Blossom of course loved it. He then took her to a Classical Music concert. To her surprise, he actually had tickets. And they were dressed appropriately too. They spent the next hour listening to music by Mozart and Beethoven, most of which both knew well. After the concert they flew back to the city.
"So where are we going next?" asked Blossom.
"To La Fancy," he said. "Then back to the movie theatre."
"Well, I've got to say, this was a wonderful date, um I mean, Special Investigation," she said.
"Yes. Maybe we could do this again sometime," Brick proposed.
"I don't think I'd want to get accused of murder all the time," Blossom teased.
"What I'm thinking is that we do some night patrols once a week. We should see that nothing's amiss, and all criminals are off the streets," he said. "Of course, such activity would work up an appetite, and we can eat dinner afterwards, then relax and do other things if you want. After all, we do deserve it for looking after the city. Perhaps next Friday night? I'm sure there would be lots of crooks to look out for that deserve special patrol."
"So after this, it's not a Special Investigation, but a Special Patrol instead? I'd love to, Brick!" she said, grinning as they flew towards Townsville.
As they neared it, they could see two blue streaks of lights.
"There's Bubbles and Boomer. I thought they were on a date?" asked Blossom in curiosity.
"I thought so too," he said. "It seems that they were fighting robots. What the? Why are they losing?"
"It's Princess," she said as they came closer. They arrived just as the two blonds were knocked out.
"So it's the two tyrants!" Princess Morebucks shouted as she saw streaks of pink and red approaching.
Both superheroes wanted nothing more than to beat up the girl who dared beat up their siblings, but they knew they had to be cautious as her robots were apparently strong enough to beat Bubbles and Boomer up unconscious.
They flew at them but stopped just short of attacking to evaluate the situation. However, before they could do anything, they were met by a hail of fire from the robots. It was weak however, and did nothing to them.
"Ha, is that the best you can do?" Brick boasted as he let himself be hit by the apparently harmless lasers.
Right before a laser hit his watch, and that of Blossom's.
"Now you can't call for back-up!" Princess shouted as the robots attempted to swarm them.
"Go and take out Princess," Brick quickly ordered. "I'll distract these tin cans!"
He made a large red ball of energy, and threw it at the machines. There was a large explosion, and the entire area was covered in smoke. When it lifted, Brick was ready with smaller balls of energy. The robots flew at him, and he threw those red balls of energy at them. Brick retreated a bit as he knew it won't be enough to destroy them.
"Get him!" Princess shouted as she pressed a button on her watch. She grinned maniacally as he retreated before the hundred or so strong robots chasing and trying to kill him.
She looked around and frowned. "Where's Blossom?" she said to herself.
"Princess, Princess," a voice from behind her said. She turned, and it was the Powerpuff Leader herself.
The two redheads stared at each other for a moment. "Well well, looks like someone just came from the prom," Princess sneered, referring to the formal clothes worn by Blossom for her night with Brick. "Are you sure you want to soil your precious dress just to fight me?"
"This is not fight," Blossom replied, "Not when I am so strong, and you are so weak. You're just a normal human, and I am a Powerpuff Girl." Her eyes glowed to send the message. "Give up, and I promise you a fair trial."
"Give up? Don't make me laugh. You see what I did to your sister and her boyfriend?"
"All your robots are chasing Brick. You don't have anything. You will pay for this. And for killing Mrs Carmichael and framing me."
"If you think I killed that old lady, you're even more stupid than I thought," she said.
"Enough! Give up or face the consequences!" Blossom demanded.
"Never!"
"You leave me no choice!" Blossom said as she laser eyed the redhead.
To her extreme surprise, Princess was able to dodge it. The heiress was wearing an updated Powerpuff Yellow suit with rockets, jet packs and more. Her hands had a special white glove and her eyes were covered with shades.
"My powerpuff suit is the latest in technology. I can do anything you can do, and I can move just as fast as you, and I can be as powerful too!" she said as she quickly closed the gap between them and gave a punch to Blossom's jaw.
To the pink puff's surprise, she was actually hurt. She fell to the ground, and there was blood on her lips. She wasn't kidding when she said that her suit gave her strength and speed.
She gritted her teeth as she looked at her opponent. She made a small pink ball, threw it at her, and attacked Princess. Princess was able to dodge the ball, but her eyes widened as she saw Blossom ready to punch her.
However, Blossom never made it as suddenly, two robots appeared on either side of her and each grabbed a hand. She tried to pry them away, but her efforts ended when she was shocked by electricity from the robots.
"Surprised that mere electricity could hurt you so much?" Princess cackled as she watched her scream. "That was specially designed to hurt creatures with Chemical X. I didn't know the exact details but apparently, the batteries where that came from were doused with antidote X or something. It won't take away your powers, but it would make you vulnerable. Oh yes! You will suffer. You don't know how long I've waited for this! After years of defeats, of having to crawl to that monkey to make me weapons! I've prepared for this for a long time. I've spent millions making the ultimate weapon that could kill you. And you know what? I just completed this one a few days ago."
"Please, Princess, don't—" Blossom pleaded as the shocks ended. Her body was aching and she was weak.
"You don't get it, do you? Tonight, you will die. You and your sisters, and the Rowdyruffs too! I wasn't going to kill you, but after Boomer beat me up in my own house, and when I watched that TV ad and saw the city worship you, I decided you had to die! And you know what? I am going to make sure that it is long and painful! I am going to enjoy every minute of it."
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Meanwhile…
One of the robots chasing Brick shot a laser beam at him. Brick dodged it, but he had to dodge another as ten other machines shot at him. He flew up and prepared a much larger attack, but one robot flew to his level and kicked him in the face. He was thrown face first to the ground.
He stood up, spat out the blood and the dirt, and had to jump as more robots attacked him. He dodged, summersaulted, fired his laser attacks, but the sheer number of his opponents—all strong and barely dented by his attacks—overwhelmed him. His body was soon covered with bruises, and he was now genuinely hurting. Yet the robots attacked as if it had inexhaustible energy.
He looked and turned around, and saw that Blossom was being held by two robots in front of a grinning Princess.
"Blossom!" he shouted as he raced towards her. But Princess saw him.
"Look! It's the knight in shining armor!" she mocked as she fired a rocket at him.
Brick easily dodged it, but it distracted him long enough for him to be grabbed on each hand by a robot. Weak, he could not break free, and soon, he was subjected to the same electrical shocks that Blossom was given.
"A pity. You would have made a fine husband. You're rich, powerful, clever, and not bad looking," Princess said as she looked at him. "Too bad you had to have that wench. Oh well, I guess I can't have everything. Oh, and you two, will die tonight."
She looked at Blossom. "Too bad Buttercup wasn't here to suffer like you four."
Princess gave a sadistic laugh as she revelled in her triumph.
Author Notes
[1] The events of my fic, The Date.
To Guest, it was. In fact, it was so unexpected it threw them off a bit.
To Pikatwig, yup, it's not good that the Smiths are back. Still, how is Harold and wife Marianne involved? We'll see.
To Kyogan-Saori, thank you very much. Hope you like this chapter too!
To William F Somebody, oh yes, a lot. This chapter shows what happened to two of those, well Boomer's date and Brick's "Special Investigation".
To John, I hope they find Fleetwood too. Yup, Boomer and Bubbles are candidates for the most adorable couple there is. Well, you'll just have to wait to see how this all turns out.
To Bob, thanks.