Thank you to all my readers! I'm sorry for the delay; I've finally gotten all my old stuff from our old computer onto this one, so I hadn't gotten around to writing in a little while. I'm sorry this chapter is a little short, but I hope you'll enjoy it anyway. And also, I'm excited to type the next one. I've been looking forward to chapter 13 for a while. ^^

"Thanks," Brick hopped down from the iron plate and rubbed his wrists. It felt nice to finally have the cuffs off. He felt something strange on his cheek and reached up to brush it off when his hand came into contact with a strange material plastered just below his right eye. As he pressed his fingers against it, he felt a strange sting from a cut. It must have been a bandage.

Blossom nodded meekly and floated back a few steps, eyeing Brick with caution.

Brick's eyes fell to the floor. Now that she finally was giving him a little distance, it made him feel… strange, like he was being ostracized. He'd never thought that Blossom might actually realize just how very much she should fear him one day, but he just shook his head lightly. He knew it was for the best. Even then he could still feel Him's influence. No matter how faint, he knew it was there.

Brick turned to watch as Bubbles unfastened Butch's shackles and his eyebrows knitted together. Why had Blossom been the one to free him? She seemed so concerned about the distance between them now, why would she release him when she understood what it could have triggered?

Brick glanced sideways at his counterpart to see her gazing up at him from under her bangs, then quickly dropped her eyes and turned her head away. She still looked frightened, still wary. Did this mean she trusted him now?

Brick smiled lightly. No, that couldn't be it; how can you trust someone who's out to kill you. He'd been foolish to think he'd ever be able to earn her faith, especially after all he'd done.

She surprised him be speaking, "W-we should go up…"

Brick looked back up and nodded. Butch fell to his feet beside him, scanning over his brother curiously, "You alright Dude?"

Brick glanced over to Butch, then back at the floor, "Yeah…" After he answered, Brick briefly considered Butch might have been asking if he was alright with Blossom standing so close, but he quickly shrugged it off. It was the same answer either way; after all that he'd been through; standing a few feet away from his counterpart was almost effortless. Almost. But he knew Butch, and probably Boomer too, might not be able to take it nearly as well. Not yet anyway.

Then it dawned on him; the professor had never explained how Boomer had been able to stand next to Bubbles without feeling anything.

He quickly turned back to Blossom, "Do you know what… uh, know how Boomer…" He wasn't really sure how to ask what he wanted; asking these sorts of questions was never easy.

But Blossom smiled in understanding and shook her head, remaining silent. Brick's eyes fell back to the floor; so now she knew not to speak to him. Now that he could probably handle it alright.

"He'll explain it when we go upstairs," Bubbles answered, floating back over to the door atop the staircase.

"Well let's get going then." Butch said eagerly as he began to float off the ground to join Bubbles, and then noticed Boomer standing in the doorway at the top of the stairs.

"What about their clothes?" he asked.

Bubbles turned back to the brothers with a look of confusion on her face as she thought about Boomer's question. Brick rolled his eyes as he was hit with a lump of red fabric.

"There!" He pulled the cloth off his face to see Buttercup standing next to the door, Boomer pressed against the wall behind her to make room. He looked rather frightened and watched cautiously as she left. Brick turned to see Butch's head covered by his sweater. Brick sighed and pulled his sweater on over his head. Butch did the same, but more hastily. Probably excited to eat.

"Okay, ready!" Butch eagerly took off after Bubbles as Brick and Blossom followed more slowly. Brick glanced back to see Blossom staring at the floor as she hovered, rubbing her arm shyly. This was too strange; Blossom, the loud, suspicious leader who had yelled at him till both their faces were red, was now too timid to even peep. Brick was tempted to reassure her that it was okay for her to talk and that he was becoming more and more accustomed to her presence, but decided against it just as he opened his mouth to speak, closing it quickly. Maybe she just needed some time to think…

As they reached the top of the stairs, one by one they landed and walked through the doorway. Brick followed as he was led to the kitchen by Bubbles and Boomer right behind her. He raised an eyebrow as he scrutinized his brother's expression. He looked one hundred percent normal, not even a bead of sweat. How had he done it? What did the professor do?

"Ah, there you are." Brick's head snapped up at the sound of the professor's voice. He gestured to the chairs around the table he was sitting at, "Why don't you guys sit down," he smiled.

Brick grinned awkwardly back. It made him feel uncomfortable being in someone else's house, especially considering how clean everything was. The kitchen was practically glowing, the marble counters clear and the glass doors washed. The ivory cabinets only added to the effect. This house was nothing like Mojo's mess of a lab.

Brick walked over to the table and took a seat next to Butch with Blossom on his right. He noticed as she scooted her chair a few inches away. He pretended to ignore her.

"Please, you should take a sandwich. You boys must be starving," the professor offered. Brick glanced up at the large plate of assorted sandwiches that sat in the middle of the table. He hadn't realized it before, but he now grasped just how ravenous he was as he stomach rumbled slightly. Now that he thought about it, he'd never eaten anything before. Neither had his brothers.

Butch dived in, grabbing three turkey sandwiches; two in one hand and a half eaten one held up to his face.

Brick glanced over to Boomer and Bubbles, who sat across from him, as they reached at the same time for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, then both withdrawing their hands when they saw the other one. Brick chuckles lightly to himself; they really were exactly the same.

Brick reached over and grabbed the sandwich closest to him: bologna and mustard. He nibbled on it lightly at first and then took larger bites. The taste was wonderful, and it made him feel more energized. After he was half finished with his sandwich, he remembered his question and look up at the professor, who sat between Bubbles and Butch. Brick swallowed quickly so he'd be able to speak coherently.

"Professor, you never explained what…uh, you did to help Boomer," he pressed.

The professor raised his eyebrows in confusion, "I didn't?" Brick's eyebrows knitted together and he shook his head slowly.

The professor smiled, "Well, then I guess it's a good thing Buttercup hasn't come back from upstairs yet."

There was a gagging sound and Brick turned to see Butch coughing into his elbow. He'd choked on his food after hearing the professor's nonchalant response.

The professor reached into his pocket, "I'm glad you reminded me Brick." He fiddled around until he produced two watches, both black with green and red straps. Brick and Butch grabbed their color-coated wristwatches and examined them more closely. Although they appeared to be digital watches, they were obviously more complicated that a regular clock.

"I would put yours on right away if I were you Butch," the professor warned and Butch quickly fastened the device onto his wrist. Brick watched as he did and the monitor sprung to life in flashes of green. A few bars appeared on the face, along with a few other additions that didn't make much sense to Brick. Butch twisted his hand back and forth as his inspected it.

"I must say though Brick," Brick turned his head back to the professor. "The way you're acting, I was sure I had given you your watch already. Is coping with Blossom really so easy now?"

Brick bit his lower lip. It was true; it was much easier for him now, but now that he was thinking about it he could feel the burn in his veins as his heart pulsed. He didn't want to say it was still hard however, but he knew a large part of it was the way Blossom was doing her best to remain undetectable.

Brick sighed, "It does still take some effort, but it's not nearly as bad as before."

The professor smiled warmly, "That's good to hear. After a little more time you may not even need the watch."

Brick glanced down at the mechanism in his hand as Butch asked the question, "So what does it do?"

"This will help you to control your power," he explained, pointing at the watch on Butch's wrist. "The three bars register your fluctuation of Chemical X, Him's DNA, and your own exertion. As the meter rise, you can see how overcome you are by your power, but the watches themselves also contain a few elements similar to the containment ray downstairs, which causes your powers to dissipate. However, if something goes wrong and your powers surges, the watch will start to beep and transmit a signal to the other two. That way you'll know if your brothers are having any trouble."

"…K-kay…" Butch replied, still not fully understanding.

The professor sighed, "I guess a practical test will help to explain things a little more." He turned back to the staircase behind him, "Buttercup!"

The green Powerpuff floated down the stairs and landed next to her sisters. "Yeah?" she asked, her arms folded together.

The professor turned back to Butch, "Now check your watch."

Both Butch and Brick turned to see that the lower of the bars on the watch had extended a small amount, just barely longer than the other two.

"You see, the bars will extend the closer you are to your counterparts, but they should keep you under control. You see Brick, I wouldn't have been able to create these without your help. I needed the data from your field test."

Brick gaze at the watch one more time before slinging it around his right hand and fastening it just below his palm. He waited a second and his breathe caught as the watch began to glow. For a second, his mind when blank in shock and he just stared blankly at his wrist.

"Brick?"

Instantly, Brick became aware again, but everything felt different, foreign. He hadn't felt the way he did just then in a while, maybe not sense he was first created a few days ago.

He felt nothing.

No pain.

No poison.

No agony.

Sweat nothingness.

"Brick?" Blossom asked again. He turned to his counterpart; he had to be sure of it. He stared right into her eyes, willing his other half to react, to growl, to cry out in suffering, yet his head remained clear and unclouded.

"Brick, are you okay?" Blossom questioned and Brick smiled. Even her voice failed to anger him.

He turned back to the professor, "Great invention Professor. It's a perfect success."

Thanks for reading! Please review and vote for my poll if you'd like to read more! ^^