The City of Townsville!
...but enough of that...
Friendship was in bloom in Ms. Keane's class, or so it had seemed at the time.
Bubbles knew she'd found a friend for life in Eric Turner.
...or had she?
"Class," Ms. Keane announced. "This is Eric Turner."
Bubbles was the very first person in class that Eric had eyes for.
His hair was blonde, just like hers. His eyes were blue, like hers. He wore a genuine smile, just as she did.
"Hiya," the new kid greeted, having a seat next to her. "I'm Eric..."
"I'm Bubbles," she said. "Nice meeting you!"
All was not well, however.
Mitch Mitchelson sat nearby, observing this happy little twosome that he just knew he'd have to break up.
He smiled wickedly and rubbed his hands together.
Then he rolled up a sheet of paper into a ball and hurled it hard at the back of Eric's head.
"Ow!"
"Who threw that?" Ms. Keane asked sternly.
Mitch grinned and raised his hand.
"Mitch," Ms. Keane sighed, rolling her eyes. "How many times do I have to..."
Ms. Keane cut off with another sigh and quickly scribbled out an office form.
She handed it to Mitch and pointed for him to march.
He left grinning ear to ear.
Bubbles hoped that maybe Mitch would get suspended or something, but there he was, waiting for her at Recess.
"Little baaby Bwubbles," he teased her in a mocking baby voice. "Saw you got yourself a new play date Bubbly!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she denied airily.
"Oh that isn't how you think of Widdle Eric?" Mitch pressed. "Widdle Eric isn't your friend?"
Bubbles was about to learn the cost of vanity and rising to Mitch's bait.
"Friend?" she asked with a laugh. "How could he be? I don't even know him!"
Eric was listening from behind a nearby tree.
His mouth quivered a little. He wiped at a tear. Then his expression changed.
His lips became an angry scowl. Hatred blazed in his eyes.
Bubbles had no idea he had overheard, or just what she had done...
(Later that night...)
The City of...oh never mind...
Townsville at dark. There's always some bad guy lurking in the shadows.
Will it be Mojo Jojo this time? Him? Princess perhaps?
The Mayor had no idea who this baddie was. He'd never seen him before...
There the Mayor had been, just finishing up a stack of official papers, when his office window was raised quickly.
He looked out into the dark night, but saw nothing.
Then a gloved hand dipped under the open window and tossed something in.
Smoke began to issue from it and filled his entire office, making him cough for air.
A shadowy figure emerged from the smoke. He was wearing what looked like Ninja costume, but the Mayor couldn't be sure. He hadn't visited Japan in quite a spell.
The Ninja was rather small of stature.
He brandished a throwing star with some rope tied to it and hurled it.
The Mayor found rope encircling him and hit his office floor all neatly tied up.
The mystery attacker smiled beneath his mask and approached the Mayor's special phone. The phone only he or Miss Bellum used to contact The Powerpuff Girls.
Blossom yawned as she came out of sleep, hearing the familiar ring.
She picked up.
"Yeah mayor?"
A mystery voice answered her.
"The Mayor can't talk right now. He is, shall we say... tied up? Why don't you come untie him? If you dare!"
The phone cut off to a dial tone.
It didn't take long for the girls to jet off into the night time sky of Townsville.
They flew into the Mayor's office in nearly three blinks of an eye and touched down.
The Mayor was tied up in the corner.
"Girls!" he called out. "Watch out for..."
They looked around, but found no one.
The office was quiet. Too quiet...
Then a smoke release device was thrown in through the window just as before.
The girls and the Mayor coughed furiously, and the same shadowy figure stepped forth.
"You may call me, the Shadow..."
Buttercup heard something spinning on the air and jetted out of the way just as a throwing star shot past and pierced the office wall.
"Impressive girlie," the Shadow praised her. "Dodge all of these. Ha!"
Then a volley of throwing stars came at them from every direction out of the still clearing smoke.
The girls dodged them all in flashes of color like little comets.
Bubbles shrieked when something hard slammed into her side and sent her flying.
The Shadow brandished a pole and twirled it a circle.
"Hiya!" he exclaimed, and went at Blossom with it next.
Blossom dodged- left, right, and left again.
It wasn't easy. The Shadow swung that pole with the swiftness of lightning.
"Oh yeah?" Buttercup challenged. "Hiya this!"
She kicked the Shadow hard in the stomach and sent him flying.
"Oofff!" he grunted, managing to catch himself on the wall, and throw himself off, landing direct on his feet.
"Not bad girlie," he taunted her.
Then he brandished a bazooka looking weapon and began firing throwing stars like cannonballs.
The girls had their work cut out for them to dodge.
Then the Shadow changed tactics again.
He was good. They had to give him that. Quick and unpredictable...
He threw his weapon hard into Buttercup's stomach, making her cry out and hit the office wall.
The Shadow drew a Katana from the sheath slung over his shoulder.
Bubbles got an idea and grabbed up his pole.
The two of them clashed the weapons together like expert duelists.
The Shadow's malicious eyes glared at her, even with his face concealed beneath the mask.
She recognized those blue eyes and gasped.
The Shadow stopped swinging and resheathed his Katana.
"Figured it out Bubbles?"
Eric laughed wickedly and pulled his mask away, revealing none other than Eric Turner.
"Eric," Bubbles gasped in surprise, looking confused and sad. "...but why?"
"Don't play with me!" he spat at her angrily. "I heard what you told Mitch. We aren't friends. Well you're right! We aren't..."
Eric made an impressive jump and landed at the open window.
"This isn't over Powderpuff Girls," he taunted. "You haven't seen the last of me! For now, we draw!"
Then he fired some rope from beneath his sleave and went swinging through the open window.
Bubbles looked incredibly sad.
"Eric why?" she asked out loud. "It's all my fault..."
Now they had a new enemy.