"Not to mention that the underground bunker the lab connects to could house nearly a hundred people"
"Also a - hang on what bunker?" Brick turned around in mid air as the three drifted across Townsville.
"There's this zappy thing the professor keeps in the lab that sends you to this big bunker he uses for major projects. Like the DyNaMo robot"
"Oh so THAT's where the mayor stole that from!" Boomer commented with a grin.
"Hehe! Yeah, that Robot was awesome when it was ripping up the town and stuff!" Buttercup chuckled at the boy's behaviour.
"It caused a lot of problems too ya know"
"Yeah we know. Didn't stop us from watching all the distruction from on top a Mojo's though"
"It was a wheeze alright!" Buttercup and Brick both looked at Boomer because of his last response.
"A wheeze?" Brick asked, "Who says that anymore"
"I know who! The professor that's who!"
"Good one Buttercup! I rest my case!"
Boomer scowled and watched the sky, identifying different types of bugs at a distance and classifying them. In his mind he tried to recall the books he'd seen. Never mind that he still couldn't read that well, the pictures had been nice and the old guy willingly teaching him anything he could.
"See Brick run..." Boomer chuckled silently, staring at the back of his brother's head.
"What was that?" Brick responded, half hearing Boomers comment.
"Just thinking out loud"
Boomer blinked as Buttercup floated back towards him. The pair had been actively talking for the last hour, discussing monsters and fighting styles, so that her appearance beside him caught him off guard.
"I um"
"I heard you loud and clear!" she whispered. "Are you, Boomer Jojo, getting jealous"
"Uh, well"
"Well?"
"Oh for god sake Buttercup!" he exclaimed at last, "Your treating us like toys or something"
"So"
"So, if you're going to play with me - just remember that I'm not a Mojo doll or anything. You can't rip my arm off or tie firecrackers to me and you definitely can NOT throw me to the dog or anything! I'm a living person"
Boomer crossed his arms, still floating after his brother. Buttercup just looked at him for a while as he sheepishly looked at the ground. A moment passed and he slowed down, making circles in the air with his left foot.
"Yeah, well." He mumbled, "I know brick and I sometimes treat real people like that to. But this is emotions I'm talking about"
Buttercup continued to stare at him, grabbing his hand and pulling him back up to speed so they didn't fall too far behind their Red leader.
"You guys are bad guys, Boomer!" She replied, "I don't intend to hurt you, but realise that I'm not going to fall in love with either of you... at least not unless the pair of you do a lot of changing"
"You and Brick have a lot in common don you"
"I have a lot in common with you too. Brick's too arrogant for his own good!"
Boomer mulled this over. He hadn't even registered he was technically hand in hand with Buttercup because she was actually pulling him along rather than floating side by side. Then they caught up with Brick.
The Ruff glared at his brother on seeing him holding hands with the Green eyed girl. It took a moment for Boomer to register and by the time he'd thought to poke his tongue at his brother Buttercup had already let go and wondered off.
The three of them were near the Professors house now and buttercup was pre-occupied with her own thoughts. The boys exchanged looks with Boomer blatantly making fun of his brother. Brick retaliated by punching the boy in the gullet, making him double over flutter to the ground.
"ooo-ugh!" He commented as he glared at Brick, "Why can't you ever fight fair"
Brick put his hands on his hips and looked down at his brother with a mixture of anger and disappointment.
"Oh yeah!" Boomer realised, "I forgot. You're a jerk"
Brick shook his head and trailed after Buttercup, stopping as they came out onto the street facing the Utonium household. "And don't you forget..." he called back, loosing track of what he'd been saying.
"What?" Boomer was in the air in a flash and floating above the others. Shock set in as all three stared open mouthed. Boomer looked down at buttercup to see she had started shaking. There where the Utonium house should have been was just a giant hole in the ground.
"What happened here?" Buttercup cried, both anger and pain showing in her voice.
Boomer dropped to the ground and put his arms around the shaking girl. Brick followed suit a second later so that both boys were holding her, one from wither side.
"This doesn't mean anybody's dead!" Boomer said as Buttercup trembled. Brick, while actively hugging Buttercup, was not looking at her. Instead he stared at the hole in the ground; Buttercup's shadow was being cast from the sun high above them onto the edge of the hole near where they were standing. His eyes followed the shadow back to the girl noticing that it was almost solid black against the ground.
"Look at the regularity!" Boomer continued, correcting his words as an afterthought. "I mean that's not a hole from an explosion. There was nothing there in the first place"
"That makes it even worse!" Buttercup growled.
"No it doesn't!" Brick interjected, "It makes it better! It means your father was nowhere near here when this happened."
"It means..." the ground underneath Buttercup's shadow became pitch black and cracks started appearing in it.■The Professor abandoned us"
A tear appeared in Buttercups eye and she swung out one of her arms to shake Brick off. A section of masonry by the edge of the hole exploded in a shower of dust and Brick was thrown clear. He slammed against the wall of Robyn's house with a large crack. Stumbling to get to his feet he yelled in pain as Buttercup and Boomer struggled with each other.
The feeling in his right arm was gone, bar a stabbing pain right at the shoulder. "Oh GREAT!" He yelled as he held it gingerly... "I probably broke the Damn thing"
Back by the Utonium's now above ground basement Buttercup was audibly crying. The ground beside her regularly exploded in showers of dust as Boomer struggled to hold on to the upset girl down and slowly managing to manoeuvre her into the street.
Brick floated into the air after the pair, mumbling to himself. "I knew this was a bad idea." He decided eventually, "That girl is completely out of control"
Brick glared at the Buttercup and spat, hitting buttercup in the back of the head. As with everything the boys and girls did the ball of spit moved fast, the force knocking the pair to the ground and causing them to roll several feet. Buttercup groaned and looked up - Boomer lying on top of her and groaning. Brick floated there above them with murder in his eyes.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING GREEN?" He demanded, before grunting from the pain in his arm and dropping to the ground. Grabbing Buttercup by the cuff of her dress with his good hand he hefted her out from under his brother and pointed her to the remains of the site of her old house.
"Look at that!" He ordered. The plot that marked the utonium house now looked like there had been an explosion. The sides of the plot had been smashed in and the space between the 'house' and the children was nothing but rubble.
"um." Buttercup replied as Brick grunted and dropped the girl.
"No matter who you're up against, or what happens you should ALWAYS keep your head!" He groaned. "I haven't been in this much pain since I DIED!" He grumbled.
"Sorry."
Boomer had got up and, taking the opportunity, was now trying to hug buttercup again. The pair was seated; Brick pacing back and forth in front of them.
"You and Butch are so the same!" Brick went on, grunting occasionally. "Butch is infamous for loosing his cool. So what if your fathers not here! That doesn't give you the right to break people's arms"
"Brick you Jerk!" Boomer interjected, "YOU need to learn compassion. Buttercup's hurting here"
"I'M Hurting here!" Brick snapped back, before moaning in pain at having tried to move his arm"
"Brick, you "
"He's right."
Both boys looked at Buttercup. She had calmed down finally and while her face looked weary she was no longer crying.
"Brick is right. I have always impulsive. I mean I try to stay calm and I'm much better than I was since Sensei Greg's lessons but just now I was out of control"
Boomer sighed and looked at his brother pleadingly.
He groaned and sat down in front of the others, still holding his arm. "Look!" he instructed, "I'm not sayin' don't blow shit up or hurt people. Don't just do it cause you're mad. You got ta plan mayhem"
The pair looked at Brick confused, imaginary question marks appearing above their heads.
"What on earth... "
Boomer looked at his brother, noticing the boys arm. ⌠Want me to fix that first?■
