Chapter 52 – Self Revelations
Brick's POV
"What's the report from Team Six?" Brick asked plainly as a Resistance soldier came running up to him.
"Nothing new to report, Team Two found traces from a patrol in their area and are moving to follow its trail." The trooper replied.
Brick hummed in acknowledgement and waved the soldier away, focusing on the small map he held in his hands. If the man saluted him or not, Brick couldn't see nor did he really care at the moment.
It wasn't like any of these cretins had the slightest amount of respect for his abilities to begin with. It was only because Blossom had given her consent through her drug filled haze to these searches that he was even in command at all.
The men and women of the Resistance were more than willing to participate in the search and rescue, most likely because the Blue Puff was who they were looking for, but they were less than pleased to have follow his instructions in the matter. Thankfully, Bubbles missing status had prevented any outright dissension from his orders but Brick had no doubt that if it was just his youngest brother they would have objected every step of the way.
Tsch. And they called themselves fighters for freedom and equality. Yeah right.
The Red Ruff took a pen from one of his jacket pockets and made a small notation in the area Team Two was combing through. Others had followed similar signs and come up empty handed but maybe they would achieve a different result.
He would have appreciated it. Already they had been out here for three hours and found nothing. Tempers were starting to get frayed as a result, and of course the most volatile of them all was…
"No, we've already searched there. We should head down this street." His middle brother growled from a few feet away.
He stood face to face with his shorter counterpart and looked about ready to start a brawl, even more so than usual. The Green Puff wasn't much different. The fierce glare she sported could have burnt a hole through paper with its intensity.
"We've got people searching down that street already moron. I'm telling you, we haven't been this way and that's where we should search next."
"Yes we fucking have! We went down there like an hour ago! God! Are you going senile already woman?!" Butch spat back at her.
Buttercup raised a fist and leaned in closer. "The only one going senile here is you! If you'd like I could add ugly to that list as well, oh wait, there isn't much I can do to improve that is there?"
"I ain't ugly! But even if I were, it's better than being a stuck bitch who can't remember where the fuck she is on a map!" Butch said through gritted teeth.
"I know where we fucking are Butch! We're at the intersection of Avery and Conner street, and we came down Dalton to get here. So that means that we haven't gone down Chapel yet! Gah! I thought you said you were going to actually use your brain during this search?!" Buttercup responded in kind, eliciting a growl from her counterpart.
"I am! And don't you try to tell me what you think I said. I said I'd get Boomer back and that's exactly what I'm going to fucking do! With or without your help!"
"Oh, is that true?" Buttercup scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest.
Butch leaned in close. "You bet your ass it Butters, and I never break a promise."
His counterpart rolled her eyes and went to reply but Brick decided that it was high time to end this melodrama and get some actual work done. Those two idiots had been picking fights with each other the entire time and it was starting to royally piss him off.
Not to mention his jaw still hurt like a bitch. Overall, it made for a very short fuse. It was time to give these imbeciles some direction. The Red Ruff stepped up to the two of them and immediately they switched their attention to him.
"Have you heard anything?" Buttercup asked anxiously, beating Butch to the punch…which caused him to growl again.
"No, I haven't. You two however, are starting to give me a headache. So here's what we're going to do. Each of you will take two men and go down whatever street you desire. I don't fucking care which it is as long as it separates you by at least a mile. If you find any traces of Boomer or Bubbles then you will radio back immediately. Got it?" Ice practically coated his words as he glared at them.
"What?! You can't do that! Besides, it's all Butters fault that there's an argument in the first place! If she would stop being such a bitch-" Butch protested before his counterpart cut him off with an affronted glare.
"My fault?! What the hell?! This is all your doing! You're the one who can't remember where the hell we've been!"
"I know exactly where we've been and it wasn't down-"
"ENOUGH!" Brick snapped, cutting Butch off before another argument began. "You two, go…now."
His anger was bubbling very near to the surface now and it was obviously apparent because the two volatile Greens snapped their venomous mouths shut and actually began to obey his orders.
Butch, of course, flipped Buttercup the bird as he turned to leave and that resulted in the whole thing nearly descending into chaos again, but thankfully the Green Puff's lackey managed to pull her away before a fist fight started.
That loudmouth, what the crap was his name again? Mike? Mark? Ah, who the hell cared, the main thing was the man could calm down the aggressive Puff and Brick was eternally grateful for that. If only Butch had someone like that to reign him in. It would make Brick's life so much easier.
He watched Buttercup and her lackey pick up another soldier and start down Chapel Street. Butch, meanwhile, grabbed two other troops and stomped his way towards Veranda Boulevard.
…The truth was, both streets had already been searched through by previous parties but at this point Brick didn't give two shits. As long as it kept those two apart, they could walk the entire way to Canada for all he cared.
He just needed a little peace to be able to think. That wasn't too much to ask for was it? No, it wasn't. With a hearty sigh, the redhead reached up one hand and began to massage his temple.
This was going nowhere.
As much as he hated to admit it, they weren't achieving any sort of results from the search patterns that he had set up. There had been no signs of the Blues whatsoever. Not one single clue. It was like the two of them had just up and disappeared!
Brick knew that logically, searching for two people in an area spanning at least ten square miles that was filled with ruined architecture would be like looking for a needle in a haystack, but this was ridiculous. He had almost forty people out looking for them! They should have at least found something by now!
Seriously? How did they not leave a trace? Boomer, he knew, would be careful about leaving tracks to follow if he was being chased by Simian patrols, but the patrols themselves should have left something behind. Instead, there were so many tracks that they couldn't figure out which went what way.
The Monkeys must have literally put hundreds of boots on the street to search for his younger brother and his counterpart.
'Probably the reinforcements from that northern base.' His mind absently supplied.
With a force that size, it seemed highly unlikely that those two had been able to achieve any sort of escape. In all likelihood, they had been captured and were now being transported to New Townsville. They could be in the Monkey's clutches before sun down…and there'd be no way to get them out.
The thought made Brick unconsciously clench his fists. Damn it all. This was not turning out like he had planned.
He knew he should have expected it, but Brick had been sure that they would find the Blues within the first hour. He had been positive. His plans were solid, he had picked every minor causeway that offered some sort of sheltered area to look through but nothing!
Why weren't they finding anything?!
Brick tried to grit his teeth but the instant pain along his jawline convinced him that it would be more prudent to settle for a light frown instead. After a second, the pain in his jaw simmered down and he could think again.
The redhead glared down at the innocent map in his hands as if it had slighted him. Somewhere in here Boomer was hiding, he knew he was. The alternative was too dismal to consider.
It was shocking to admit it, but true. The thought of Boomer laying captive the hands of Mojo Jojo did something entirely unpleasant to his stomach. It almost made him want to vomit actually.
It was perplexing.
Brick had never really had this sort of reaction before, but then again, he had never been faced with the permanent loss of one of his brothers before either. He knew that eventually a day would come when one of them wouldn't make it out of an ambush. They were always risky and had a higher probability of failure than he would have liked to admit. Eventually their luck would run out and one of them would perish. He had thought he was mentally prepared for it.
But now…
He had to face the facts, maybe…just maybe…he kind of depended on Boomer.
The thought seemed absurd, who would depend on the baby of the family? The one who usually had to have other people do everything for him? But now that Brick considered the notion more and more, he began to realize that there might have been a few things he had overlooked whenever he thought of the blonde Ruff.
For instance, maybe the Mute wasn't quite as helpless as he was usually labeled. He had escaped several Collectors on his own, relatively speaking. And he'd been able to take care of himself when they tricked that other Collector into destroying that Simian power station. And of course, this whole alliance with the Powerpuff Girls was the result of Boomer taking the initiative to actually speak for once in his life and create a middle ground for Brick and his counterpart to meet on.
…Damn it. He had undervalued the little Mute hadn't he?
And now that the well had been opened, his mind started to categorically drudge up each and every instance in which Butch or Boomer had done something that had helped him achieve his goals. He was stunned to find that when he thought about it, there were quite a few occurrences.
He never before realized how much he depended on his brothers to do their parts. Thinking back on things, they offered more than just being soldiers that blindly followed orders. If it hadn't been for Butch's ingenuity or Boomer's stealth then there would have been more than a few times that his plans would have gone down in flames.
They needed each other to function properly as a unit…and admitting that to himself made him want to punch something.
He was Brick Jojo, a self-sufficient, capable, and entirely practical man. He was a leader, he knew what had to be done and how to achieve results. He shouldn't be so out of sorts because one of his resources disappeared!
He shouldn't have needed anyone!
Gah, how could he have not recognized this weakness before it tried to cripple him? He should have seen something like this coming well before now and thought up a way to counter it. There had to be a way to shield one's self from these…emotions.
But he had failed to do so, had failed to even identify it, and all the blame fell solely on himself. To say he was pissed would have been the understatement of the century.
The Red Ruff Leader growled low in his throat and began marching down the trash lined streets, passing by what was left of his search squad.
"You men, with me." He barked as he marched by.
The remaining soldiers scrambled to grab their gear and hurried after him as he kept his steady pace, eyes searching every crevice and shadow. The sun glared at him as it started its steady journey from the horizon line. Brick fixed his most determined scowl on his face and glared right back.
"We're going to find them damn it. We have to."
Boomer's POV
His nose was itchy…and there was something bright shining on his eyes.
Those were the first sensations that Boomer recognized as his consciousness steadily dragged itself awake. With a sluggish effort, the blonde forced his eyelids open and was greeted by the bright, blinding light of the sun -right in his eyes.
Ah, what a wonderful way to start the morning. Utterly blinded.
Boomer shut his eyes again with a groan and mentally started to catalogue all his hurts and pains. His arm and hand still ached but they were a dull pain now. He face stung like a couple dozen bees had had their way with it, but other than that, he was doing pretty good. You know, besides the sore muscles and bone deep exhaustion from running several miles yesterday.
All that was, unfortunately, not enough to counter the inevitable fact that the sun had risen and it was time to get up.
He didn't want to.
Sleeping a few more hours was really tempting, but somewhere in the back of his mind was a little nagging voice telling him that he had to get moving as soon as possible. Knowing how his psyche worked, that little voice wouldn't quiet down anytime soon, so the only way to shut it up would be to do as it said.
The Blue Ruff sighed softly and opened his eyes again, more carefully this time, to morning's cheery rays. It was only as he moved to stretch that he found something amiss.
He couldn't move his left arm.
That brought him out of his groggy state quicker than a slap to the face. Looking down in alarm at his unresponsive limb, Boomer was greeted with a sight that instantly froze him.
Not four inches away from his face laid Bubbles slumbering visage. Her head was resting lazily on his shoulder and her body had pinned his arm to his side.
Well, that explained the dead feeling in his appendage.
Boomer could feel his face start to redden as he sat there, still unable to get himself to move.
What was wrong with him? Okay, so she had fallen asleep on his shoulder, it was no big deal. He was sure people did that all the time.
Of course, he had never had something like this happen to him before, but he was almost positive others did this a lot. It was nothing to get embarrassed over. So why was he blushing like a drunken sailor?
They were friends now. He thought that meant he would be over this whole awkward phase. Last night was awkward, but that was mostly because of the heavy emotional baggage they were talking about. He would have thought that after something like that, a little physical contact would be easy to handle.
Obviously not.
After taking a moment to swallow nervously and gather himself, Boomer carefully began to maneuver his shoulder out from under his counterpart's sleeping head. It was tricky, like a magician pulling a cloth out from under a table full of plate ware, but he managed to do it. With her head now resting peacefully on her own shoulder, Boomer slid away from Bubbles and carefully picked himself off of the floor.
Oh so quietly, he tip toed out the door and into the hallway. A quick peek back inside the room assured him that she was still solidly asleep and he let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Well…that was a fun way to start a morning. And yes, that was sarcasm.
Okay, he'd admit that it wasn't really unpleasant, but it was probably bad for his heart to start beating like drum so soon after waking up. He could feel already the spike of adrenaline starting hitting his blood stream.
Well, there went the idea of sleeping in. It was probably for the best. He needed to focus on keeping them safe, he couldn't let his guard down just because of some heart to heart talks the other night. He was the fully functional one, it was up to him to get them home.
Now that the sun had risen in the sky, it would probably be as good a time as any to check out their surroundings and get a bead on the situation. They had lasted through the night, but there might be a stray Simian patrol still around.
Pushing his surprise morning wake up experience from his mind, Boomer picked a direction and started moving.
As he walked down the hallway, the Blue Ruff finally got to stretch out his stiff back and in the process tweaked his right arm. Boomer winced at the pain brought on by the movement and examined his bandages.
They were still looking surprisingly good. There was no bleed through or leaking or anything like that which meant that the wound was finally starting to heal. He had no clue how far along it was but he wasn't about to cut the bandage open to take a peek. It was healing and that was good enough for him.
A small smile graced his features as he walked into one of the nearby apartments and picked his way through the rubbage to the window on the far wall.
Outside the sun had fully risen above the skyline and shone down on the ruin city with a warm light. It was probably nearing nine o'clock in the morning or so. Down on the streets below, silence reigned and not soul moved about. It was eerily vacant but Boomer was thankful for that.
It was better than the alternative of being filled with Simian soldiers. He'd take creepy emptiness over hostile populous any day.
They were alone as far as he could tell and while the call of sleep was still an enticing thought, he knew that it would be better for the both of them if they started making their way back to the Resistance base.
Honestly, now that he had moved around a bit and got the blooding flowing, he didn't feel all that tired. Sure he had only gotten like four or five hours of sleep but oddly enough, he felt almost…refreshed.
Hmm, He must have slept really well last night. Exhaustion usually had that sort of effect on a person. It was weird though, he would have thought that sleeping sitting up with someone leaning against you would have been more uncomfortable and detrimental to his rest. Hmmm…
That was unimportant though.
Moving, they had to get moving soon. Yes, he needed to focus on getting back to the base. That meant he was going to need to wake Bubbles and make sure she was up for the trip first. That ankle of hers was probably hurting like a bitch and that could possibly slow them down.
He knew the bastardized bandaging job he had done last night wasn't anywhere close to proper care. If Bubbles ever hoped to walk on that foot again then they needed to get her to some sort of skilled surgeon as soon as possible, like the Professor. He would be able to set things right.
Boomer took one last look at the desolate, peaceful scene outside the window before heading back to the room where his counterpart slept. She was still out when he entered and he almost felt a twinge of guilt at the fact that he was going to have to drag her out of her slumber. But things had to be done and sleeping wouldn't help them achieve any of it.
Kneeling down, Boomer reached out a hand and started to lightly shake Bubbles' shoulder. "Bubbles, hey Bubbles, wake up." He called out softly.
With a light groan, Bubbles blinked her eyes open. She actually became surprisingly coherent after a few seconds and let out a mighty yawn.
"Morning." She chirped as she rubbed at her eyes.
"Morning." Boomer replied as he watched her. "How are you feeling? Is your ankle bugging you a lot?"
The petite blonde offered him a shrug and a pained smile as she threw the blankets off herself, revealing the bandaged limb. "I'm feeling pretty good, the sleep and food really helped. I don't think my ankle will slow us down too much today. It doesn't hurt too much. Really."
Boomer sighed at her obvious attempt to assuage his worry and handed her the cracker box. "Liar." He said in a playful manner.
She took a few and popped them into her mouth with genuine smile. "I actually am feeling better."
He reached up a hand and lightly touched it to her forehead. What she said was at least partially true, her fever was completely gone and she did seem to have some color back in her cheeks. That was a positive change.
"Well, whenever you're ready we can head out." He withdrew his hand with a small smile on his lip.
Bubbles nodded and munched on a few more stale crackers before dusting off her hands. "No time like the present. Let's do this."
How the hell was she this…cheery? Especially only minutes after waking up. He knew he had compared her to a ray of sunshine once or twice but he hadn't seriously thought she embodied that analogy until now. Seriously, she was way too cheerful for how early it was.
Bubbles took the hand he offered with a tiny grin and he pulled her up to her feet. It was hard for the blonde Puff to balance with just one foot so she was forced lean pretty heavily on him to stay upright. And of course, it was only then that Boomer realized he had forgotten to put on the sling that he could carry her in.
Daammmnn ittttt.
"Ah crap, I forgot to put on the sling. Hold on for second." He grumbled and helped her lean again the nearby wall.
"It's okay, I'm good." She replied, trying to keep her balance as best she could.
Taking a second to make sure she wasn't about to tip over, Boomer hurried over to the pile of sheets they had discarded the night before and found the one they had fashioned. It took a minute to wrap the sheet around himself correctly and it was made all the more difficult by the fact that he kept looking up to make sure Bubbles hadn't collapsed or anything. He didn't want her to fall and injure herself further.
He now knew what a mother hen with new born chicks felt like.
Once he had secured the sheet to his person, he made his way back towards her…and then the ordeal started.
See, last night, getting Bubbles into the sling hadn't been really all that hard or particularly embarrassing. They had been running for their lives, the only thing either of them had cared about was not getting filled full of lead. Thus it was of little consequence to tell her to hop on his back so they could GTFO.
Now though…
Boomer cleared his throat awkwardly as he turned and present his back towards her. Without the adrenaline or near delirious exhaustion coating his mind, the prospect of getting Bubbles to climb onto his back was more than a little distressing. It shouldn't have been, they were friends now!
But it was.
By the time his counterpart had finally situated herself into the sling properly, Boomer was blushing like there was no tomorrow.
Grrr. He was really almost convinced there was something wrong with him. The only plus side to this was the fact that she couldn't see his face and tease him about it. Not that she would, she wasn't like his brothers.
Thank God.
"Ahem, um…you ah good to go?" He asked hesitantly once he felt her weight settle.
"Mmhmm." Bubbles hummed lightly and slipped her arms around his shoulders, leaning against him.
Well, that blush wasn't about to go away anytime soon was it?
Gah! Serious issues with his psyche! He was convinced now. Boomer quickly decided that instead of focusing on his inability to control the color of his face, it would be more productive to forget about it and get a move on. With Bubbles secure on his back, the blonde Ruff walked out of the apartment.
Out in the street below, the pale morning light cast long shadows across the abandoned cars and piles of refuse. A cold wind blew through the buildings and tussled Boomer's hair about. The cold pierced right through his thin shirt and made him miss his poor dismembered hoodie and beanie more than ever.
It wasn't too bad thanks to the extra source of body heat he was carrying around, and the sun did ward off the worst of the chill, but winter was definitely setting in. They would most likely be getting snow soon.
Thankfully, not today it seemed. While it was cold, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Overall, the day looked like it would turn out to be a pleasant one, perfect weather for walking through a ruined city if you didn't mind the scenery.
"Do you have any idea of where we are?" Bubbles asked over his shoulder.
"Hmmm….nope. Not a clue." He replied uncertainly.
That was something that hadn't really crossed his mind until now. He had totally lost track of their location last night as he tried to escape their pursuers. Who knows how far they had travelled? They could be an extra ten miles away from the Resistance base for all he knew.
Add on top of that the fact that he was still iffy on the exact location of the base and Boomer was beginning to get more than a little worried about their situation. While the urgency of last night was gone, they were still in enemy territory and pretty heavily injured.
What if they ran into a patrol during their walk back? Oh that would suck soooo bad.
"Well, I suppose we'll just have to wing it until we can find out huh? I think we should go…that way!" Bubbles chirped, raising an arm and pointing down the street.
"How do you know that's the right way?" Boomer questioned her with an arched brow.
It wasn't that he doubted her abilities to navigate the city, from what he had heard she seemed to know it like the back of her hand. No, it more the fact that she had randomly picked a direction to go and didn't seem the least bit concerned about where it would lead them.
"I don't." The Blue Puff said simply.
Boomer turned his head around and fixed her with an incredulous stare. "…And you just want to go down it? Even though it could lead us further away from the base?"
She rolled her eyes at him playfully. "Well, if neither of us knows the right way then we're going to have to choose some direction and start walking. Otherwise we'll stand here all day and never make it back. Right?"
After thinking for a few seconds on her blunt statement, Boomer had to admit that he really had no counter argument. She was right about the moving part. He just really hoped that it wasn't going to lead them straight into the grasp of a Simian patrol or convoy….or outpost.
Now that would be bad.
"Relax Boomer. We'll get there eventually."
"Unless we run into something first...like a Collector." He muttered morosely.
Bubbles caught it and lightly smacked him on the shoulder. "None of that! No pessimism allowed! We have to stay positive."
"Okay, okay!" Cowering slightly lest she smack him again, the blonde Ruff started down the street in the direction which his counterpart had pointed. "…But how do you know there won't be a Collector or a patrol or something?"
He felt Bubbles shrug behind him. "I don't, but what's the point in worrying over something we have no real control over? All it does is make you feel bad and gets you all anxious. Why feel like that when instead we could be enjoying such a nice winter day?"
…Huh.
He supposed that made a little sense in a live in the moment, carpe diem kind of way. And let's be honest here, he did tend to over worry about things he had no control over. Bubbles had made a good point. What did it gain him to always be fretting over stuff?
Not a damn thing really.
While he agonized over the little things, Bubbles was almost the opposite. She just let things slide right off her, like they had no effect. Her outlook on life was completely full of sunshine and rainbows and probably some bunnies for good measure.
And she was one of the most cheerful people he had ever met because of it. Was it because she had learned to let things go and not wrestle with them over and over again in her mind? It did seem a lot less stressful…
Maybe she was right, maybe he should try to chill out for a bit? Not worry over things he couldn't control.
"…I guess you have a point." Boomer relented as he stepped over a crushed newspaper bin.
"Of course I do! You have to change what you can change and leave the stuff you can't to itself. Things usually have a way to turning out in the end so don't worry so much okay?" She leaned over and looked him in the eye.
The change of weight nearly caused Boomer to tip over, but he managed to compensate in time and locked gazes with her.
He knew it wouldn't be easy, worrying was something he did naturally. It wasn't like he consciously tried to keep going over things and agonize about stuff. It just happened. But maybe…just maybe with Bubbles help he could try this change of mindset.
…Yeah…it was worth a shot anyway.
He offered her a tiny, sincere smile. "Okay, I'll try."
Bubbles returned his smile with a grin as bright as the sun. "Good! I'll help you too. Now, enough dilly dallying! Onward I say! Back to home!"
"Yes Ma'am!" The Blue Ruff replied smartly and set off, taking the two of them down the street in some random direction with no clue about where they were going.
Yet somehow…it didn't seem as quite as dreadful as it had before.
A/N: Brick's on a mission! And Boomer needs to lighten up, good thing Bubbles's there with him. :D So what did you guys think about today's chapter? Good? Bad? Okay? Let me know with a review because we are going to have a SPECIAL CHRISTMAS/300 REVIEW DOUBLE BONUS POST NEXT WEEK!
Yes, you read that right. TWO! Read 'em TWO chapters next week in celebration of Christmas and breaking the 300 review mark! Now, do I know if we'll actually break 300 reviews? No, but it's possible. We're so close anyway so I figured I just give it to you ;) Aren't you all so special!
Special hello to my newest favoriter and follower: October Autumn! Oh and Grawrface. Welcome!
Reviewer Recognition:
Scourge: Man, school on Saturday? That sucks :/ But AWESOME job on the math test! Not one mistake? I'm impressed. ^.^ As for the story, yes the Professor is a BAMF. He's always portrayed as girly/goofy kind of guy but I think when it comes down to it, he would be pretty fierce when it came to protecting his girls and what he views as important. I'm still debating on whether or not I'm going to reveal how the Collector got destroyed. Right now I'm leaning towards leaving it a mystery, a little something for everyone to chew on :D Besides, it's really there as more of a hint to certain things in the story. I'll leave you with that! Thanks for the review and the congrats mate! 330k and counting!
ROC95: Thank you! I aim to please with the cuteness factor :D Thanks!
No-Named-Dude: Sweet! I've said it before and I'll said it again, I love toying with emotions lol. No, really I'm glad that I could get that emotion across properly. I'm always really careful to try and keep things flowing in a realistic way that will carry the readers along with the story. I'm glad it works and that the little spots of humor flow nice too. I just can't resist them ^.^ Thanks for the review!
crazyfor mario: Yes! The Blues have reached a breakthrough, next up:...*drumroll please*...GREENS! Oh yes! And let me tell you, it's going to take a lot for that to happen. But it's oh so fun. Expect more drama and more fights cause let's face it, these are the Greens we're talking about, it's kind of mandatory ;)
Meleexx: Get their powers back? Hmmm, well you're just going to have to wait and find out! Oh, I'm so mean sometimes. Sorry! But thanks for the review!
Lily: Oh no! I didn't mean to make it so sad!...well, actually yes, yes I did...I regret nothing! But I'm glad it came through the writing well at least. So sorry about the waiting thing and dragging stuff out but you'll be happy to know that the reunion takes place...NEXT CHAPTER! So just one more week and then things happen! Two chapters of reunion goodness! It'll be great! Promise! oh, and no more sad parts so you're parents don't look at you all weird like ;) Thanks for the three reviews and the lovely compliment! I don't think I'm the best writer(there are so many better ones than me) but I do like to think of myself as competent so it means a lot for you to say that. THANK YOU! (And yes! JL8 needs more readers! Yale is an amazing artist and he makes the super heroes sooooo adorable, I accept all shame for getting you hooked HAha!)
Silent Reader: Thank you for your support! You're stories are really good, as I've already told you but it bears repeating. But yes, like I said to Scourge above, I'm not sure if I'm ever going to actually reveal what happened. I mean, I know what happened, but do I want you readers to know? Tough decisions for sure *evil smirk* We'll see, time may change my mind ;) Thanks a bunch!
TheWonderfulWorldOfJazz: Yes! Slow claps for both of them! I wanted to give them both something deeper than what everyone paints them as. I try to do that with all the characters but since this is the Blue Arc, I've been concentrating on Boomer and Bubbles. Butch and Buttercup will get their turns soon. Well, relatively soon. We both know how long it takes for anything to happen in my story-Sorry not sorry! :D Thanks for the review!
Nietvries: Thank you, it makes me super happy to hear you say that! The Professor deserved to have an awesome back story, he's just too awesome not to. And we both know I can't help but play with Boomer's poor feelings. Rest assured, there is more of that to come in the upcoming chapters. Hehehe! Thanks for the review!
Okay, I think I got all of them! Thanks so much guys for all the lovely reviews last chapter! And thanks to all of you silent readers out there! Hope this chapter lived up to the last two. I can't wait for next week's chapter! I need to get writing!
Next week: 'Reunions' I don't think I need to explain this one right? ;) See you guys next week! Have a great Christmas! (If you celebrate it, if not, have a good winter break!)
