Soon after, the Hyperforce was zipping across the surface of the moon known as Ranger-7.
"Know what I like about Ranger-7?" Otto sighed wistfully. "...The peace and quiet." However, he was jolted from his reverie by Nova, who was performing a series of punches on a boulder she'd just reduced to chunks. Said punches turned the chunks into smaller gemstones, which Nova and Chrissy caught.
Chiro picked up a chunk. "Quiet? Try boring."
Otto shot the boy a glare.
Sparx was passing by with a cartful of moon gems. "A lifeless moon ain't fun, kid? C'mon. Just look at all the, uh...rocks." he tried to say.
"My sentiments exactly: bo-ring," Lynn replied as she took up a moon gem and chucked it in the cart. "Two points for Lynnsanity!"
"Who would've thought the moon would be boring?" Kimberly commented.
"At least it's better than that movie Fly Me to the Moon that my aunts rented for a Family Movie Night," Chrissy rolled her eyes before smirking. "I just ended up having great riffing material with Aunt Aria and Aunt Adagio."
"Oh, come now," Gibson said as he examined one moon gem. "Each rock is a geological wonder just waiting to be converted into much-needed robot fuel-" he then gasped and complained once the Black Robot Monkey took the rock away from him and tossed it away into Sparx's cart.
"2 points for Antauri now too." Lynn chuckled.
"I believe the point Gibson is trying to make is that you can find excitement anywhere." Antauri advised paternally.
"Even somewhere as inhabited as this?" Akito asked.
"Precisely," Antauri nodded. "You just need to know where to look."
"If it's so uninhibited, what's that down there?" asked Chiro, pointing to the bottom of the cliff, where a small, round, and fuzzy blue creature was sitting.
"Awwww~" Kimberly gushed. "It's so CUUUUUTE~!"
"Huh?" Nova asked as she threw another gem to Sparx, but it ricocheted off his head and caused an avalanche, with a tidal wave of rocks about to crush the little fuzzy guy in its path.
"NO!" Kimberly panicked.
"Avalanche!" Chiro cried out.
Luckily, the ones in the way flew out of the way in time, but the little fuzzy guy was still in the way as he bounced around obliviously before panicking of what might happen next.
"All right, guys, let's do this!" Raul called out before he transformed into Turbo Tigre.
The Robot Monkeys then got ready as well as Akito began to fly in the air.
"Hyperforce, GO!" LJ declared as he flew down the mountain.
Antauri used his telekinesis to stop most of the rocks from falling, but a few of the rocks tumbled downwards.
Nova summoned her gauntlets. "Boom-Boom Wake-up!" And she punched the rocks into pebbles.
"Scritch-Scratch Doom Thrower!" Otto declared, vaporizing some more rocks.
"Magna-Tingler Blast!" Sparx disintegrated some more, but a few more rocks were still going to crush the little guy.
Fortunately, Gibson managed to dig a massive hole that the rocks landed in, but one was still on the warpath. Chiro and LJ both wound up their arms, and destroyed it with a Duo Thunder Punch.
"Nice one, cousin!" Akito smiled proudly.
The dust soon cleared as LJ and Chiro faced the little guy warmly and comfortingly. Their possible new friend soon backed away, whimpering out of fear.
"Careful, boys, that creature could be dangerous." Gibson warned as he stepped in protectively.
"It's okay, little guy, we're not gonna hurt ya." Chiro comforted as he knelt down and held out his arms to soothe the little guy.
The new friend cooed before jumping into his hands and licking his helmet with thick, pink slobber.
"Well, you're a chipper little fella, aren't you?" LJ asked, petting the tiny creature, who licked his helmet as well.
"Looks like you guys made a new friend," Akito commented before he took out a random screencap of him, Estelle, and the Loonatics with their fuzzball pets which were a huge trend for a while before the fuzzballs were sent away. "Almost reminds me of the Fuz-Z's from Acmetropolis."
The others just glanced at him before shrugging off his personal reference.
"He's really friendly," Chiro smiled before looking at the Robot Monkeys. "Hey, you know what I'm thinkin'?"
"Oh, no," Gibson dismissed as he waved his hands in the air. "We are not bringing that thing into the Super Robot."
The furball soon jumped out and came to meet the rest of the Robot Monkeys up close, being just as friendly to them as it was with LJ and Chiro.
"You don't think he's a Pokémon, do you?" Lynn asked Akito.
Akito doubted it, but he brought out his PokéDex just to make sure.
"NO KNOWN MATCHES." The PokéDex told him.
"Definitely not." Akito then told Lynn.
"No way!" LJ remarked. "He's something completely different all together!"
The little fellow bounced into Kimberly's arms and began licking her. "Plus he's so adorable~!" she gushed.
"So cute!" Nova agreed.
"Probably won't eat much and you gotta love slobber!" Otto chuckled.
"Come on!" Sparx chuckled. "The furball won't take up much space!"
"And this will only be temporary?" Antauri prompted Chiro.
"Sure!" Chiro smiled. "Ranger-7's uninhabited so the little... Thingy must be lost."
"And as soon as we find his home, we'll return him." LJ added.
"Just keep it away from me!" Gibson warned as he seemed to be the only Robot Monkey who didn't like the furball.
"Seems that Gibson is the only Robot Monkey who doesn't like the furball." Akito commented.
"...Why did you say all of that?" Lynn asked strangely.
"...I have no idea." Akito replied.
"Well, thanks for the heads-up, Captain Obvious," LJ replied. "Now let's get going!"
"ACHOO!" Gibson suddenly sneezed and groaned. "And give that thing a bath."
And so, they came into the Super Robot and took off to go back home after another successful mission, even if this just felt like a visit to see moon gems and a new furry friend.
"We're gonna need a name for that thing." Lynn remarked.
"How about Fuzzo?" Kimberly suggested. "Short for Fuzziwilliam Q. Ball III."
"I was thinking Fuzzovitchky, but that's actually a good idea right there," LJ nodded.
They watched as Chiro projected a tiny hologram of Gibson's head that Fuzzo was chasing around the main room. Shortly after, Fuzzo was blown halfway out of the room via an explosion, which Gibson soon walked from, covered in soot.
"Heh... Well, that reminds me of home..." Lynn chuckled sheepishly.
"Oh, come on, Gibson, it was an accident." Chiro smiled nervously at the angry Blue Monkey.
"I'm not so sure," Gibson glowered. "According to my ongoing analysis, that creature is a new monster species!"
"That little guy?" Kimberly asked. "A monster?"
"Precisely!" Gibson replied as he showed his readings while Fuzzo made a bit of a mess in their home. "It's already damaged our computer cables and clogged our ventilation system with its filthy hair! It could be trying to destroy us!"
"What? Thingy is harmless," Chiro retorted. "Ain'tcha, Thingy?" But when he looked down, Thingy wasn't next to him.
Just then, a panel popped out of the wall and Fuzzo fell out, but Kimberly caught him.
Gibson picked up some of the hair. "Harmless? Hm... I'll find out for certain."
"I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, Gibson." Kimberly replied.
"We shall see, Kimberly, we shall see." Gibson nodded a bit.
Kimberly smiled as she hugged and nuzzled with Fuzzo. Gibson sighed at her before walking off to do some research.
"Is anyone up for training?" Antauri asked the others.
"I feel like we're gonna have to anyway." Kimberly said softly as she held onto Fuzzo.
"Alrighty then, we may as well spar somewhat," LJ replied. "Whoever isn't sparring can take turns watching Fuzzo!"
Lynn then suddenly lunged out and football tackled LJ with a laugh as if she just sprung from nowhere.
"Whoa!" LJ yelped as they rolled around. "Better late than never...!"
Lynn laughed.
"All right, you crazy kids, let's get going." Raul smirked.
And so, they went off to do their training with the Robot Monkeys.
"We're going to train a little different today with a new design." Antauri told the group.
"Simulation?" Chrissy guessed.
"Actually, it's this," Antauri said before showing a new tube that had various weapons such as spiked mace, robotic claws, and saws as he demonstrated while avoiding the weapons. "As you can see, The Weapons Reflex Trigger is designed to keep us on our toes... Or off them as the case may be," he then informed before smiling once he finished. "So, who wants to-"
"Ooh! Me first!" Nova beamed as she went to go on ahead.
"Better her than me." Raul shrugged bashfully.
"This is gonna be way too easy..." Nova smirked as she dodged the weapons barrage. "So, got anything a little more challenging?"
As Antauri tried to press another button, the panel began to spark, until it conked out. Just then, multiple pillars with weapons inside rose up.
"Something tells me this isn't part of the training exercise." grumbled Chiro.
"Well, I say bring it on!" Lynn challenged. "Lynn Loud ain't afraid of nuthin'!"
"Don't bruise your ego." Raul warned.
Everyone soon jumped and fought all around against the weapons.
"I think we have a hacker in the house or something!" Akito called out before bringing out his sword to slice and dice some weapons, clashing with some of them in the process.
And so the group continued fighting against the malfunctioning training room. Soon, they were victorious and stood together after the last malfunction occurred.
"Great... We won..." Chrissy panted. "But just what the heck was that all about?!"
"Yeah, that was challenging." Nova added.
Chiro soon looked around suddenly. "Anybody seen Thingy?" he then asked.
"Fuzzo." Kimberly countered.
"Whatever." Chiro shrugged at her.
The fuzzball was shown to be in a control panel and chewing at the wires like food before looking around and looked bashful once he was caught in the act. The Monkeys shot glares at the kids.
"Monkey Team, I've just made a startling discovery!" Gibson announced on the view screen. "And it's related to that 'Thingy'."
Just then, an alarm went off. "WARNING, AIRLOCK BREACH!" announced the computer. "OUTER DOOR OPENING," Suddenly, the outer door hatch opened, and the vacuum of space began sucking everything out, including Gibson. "YOU MAY BE PULLED INTO OUTER SPACE AND YOUR DOOM."
Gibson grabbed the closest object to stop himself from getting sucked out, but he lost his grip and bumped his head on the way out.
"GIBSON!" The kids panicked.
Gibson soon fell out and entered the deep vacuums of space.
"Gibson..." Chiro frowned as they looked out the window as they lost the Blue Monkey.
"Maybe Atomic Betty or Duck Dodgers will save him?" Kimberly said softly, though mostly to LJ.
"We can't leave him behind," LJ declared. "Let's turn this sucker around!"
"Roger, LJ!" Sparx replied.
They soon took the controls and began to turn around as they had a monkey overboard.
"We're closing on his position." Antauri said as he checked the tracking monitor.
"Great." Akito nodded.
The Super Robot soon flew out and closer towards Gibson... Only to suddenly power down.
"Oh, come on!" Akito complained. "Now? The Super Robot decided to just power down now?!"
"Well... That's just Prime." LJ sighed as Kimberly looked down at Fuzzo, who looked up at her sadly.
"Sparx! Can you grab him?" asked Chiro.
"Course I can grab him!" Sparx exclaimed. "...I hope I can grab him."
Fortunately, the Super Robot managed to reach out and grab Gibson, pulling him back into range.
"You think he might be screaming?" Raul asked the others.
"What makes you say that?" Chrissy replied. "I don't hear him screaming."
"But in space, no one can hear you scream." Raul smirked.
The others looked a bit deadpan from that remark. They soon brought Gibson inside and he had to be checked out due to what had happened.
"I hope he'll be okay," Akito said softly. "I don't doubt it though."
Soon after, Gibson was in the med bay. "Just a bump on the head. He'll be okay." Chiro said.
"Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the Robot; we have multiple system failures," Antauri shook his head. "We're not going anywhere for now."
Chiro sulked. "We should've listened to Gibson..."
"Now, now, I'm sure Fuzzo didn't mean what he did." Kimberly frowned.
"Kimberly, you can't keep protecting that thing." Antauri told her.
"He was just playing," Kimberly pouted. "He'd never hurt anyone."
"C'mon, little thingy!" Otto said to Fuzzo, as he, Nova and Sparx were crowding around him while holding a cage. "Get in there, c'mon!"
"I'm sorry, but we gotta," said Nova. "After Gibson-"
Sparx cut her off. "Cornered! Gotcha now!" he chuckled.
Fuzzo shuddered until he changed into a massive monster.
"He doesn't look so cute now!" Chrissy exclaimed.
"Nope... Not really," Kimberly shivered as she began to feel scared now. "I just can't believe this would happen."
"This is where Gibson would say 'I told you so'!" Sparx commented.
The fuzz monster soon knocked them all against the wall. Akito soon hopped back up and grabbed a piece out of the wall, ripping it off like it was nothing, and threw it right at Fuzzo. Fuzzo soon fought back and snarled once he got the piece off of him and grinned darkly.
"Well, that could've gone worse." Akito shrugged at himself.
Just then, LJ stepped forward.
"Fuzzo! Stop!" And then he changed back to normal. "It's me, little buddy."
Fuzzo blinked, then smiled as he changed back to his tiny self.
"Good Fuzzo!" LJ smiled as the little guy began licking his face.
"Phew... Much better." Chiro smiled in relief.
"I'm afraid we must still quarantine Fuzzo, children," Antauri suggested. "The creature is more of a threat than we imagined."
"Oh, but he won't hurt anyone anymore right now!" Kimberly pouted. "We don't have to worry now!"
"Kimberly..." Antauri sighed at the girl.
"LJ, you can't make them lock away Fuzzo." Kimberly pouted.
"I don't like it any more than you do." LJ sighed as he turned and walked out of the room.
Kimberly looked very heartbroken right now. Fuzzo then whimpered sadly once he was placed in the cage and Chiro shut the door to keep him in there.
"STOP!" Gibson called as he soon came by. "Fuzzo is not the threat after all!"
"Now he tells us." Chrissy rolled her eyes slightly.
"What're you talking about, Gibson?" Lynn asked the Blue Monkey.
"I'm afraid one of YOU has been sabotaging the robot!" Gibson replied as he showed some evidence.
"Well l, what're we waiting for?" LJ exclaimed as he raced back inside.
"Gibson must've hit his head harder than we though." Sparx remarked.
"I was trying to explain before I was sucked into space," said Gibson as he put the hair into the machine. "A flake of what appears to be ordinary dandruff, courtesy of Fuzzo, is actually a virus, created to destroy us!"
Chiro glared. "Courtesy of Skeleton King!" he exclaimed.
"Of course!" Akito glared back. "How did I not see that coming?"
"Who infected your little friend and left him at our disposal, anticipating you kids would adopt him." Antauri theorized.
"Yes, and I calculated that one Robot Monkey has the virus and is now under Skeleton King's control." Gibson remarked.
All of the Robot Monkeys shared looks with each other.
"So riddle me this: how come not all of you are infected?" Chrissy demanded.
"I haven't completed my full analysis," Gibson began to explain. "However we can find out which one of us it is."
"All right then, let's crack this case." Akito decided.
AND SO...
Gibson began his tests to see whoever it was that had gotten infected. "Pre-tests complete. The Robot's computer will now scan us."
The screens showed X-rays of the Monkeys, but just as it showed Gibson's X-ray, the computer started to short-circuit.
"RUN!" Nova exclaimed, as she and her brothers disconnected themselves, and ran for it just as it exploded.
As the smoke cleared, Otto got to his feet. "Did I pass?" he asked.
"Should've realized whoever has the virus would sabotage the test." Gibson noted, as everyone got back up.
Nova gave a suspicious glare. "Yeah... And it's probably the same one tried to get rid of me in the training room!" she exclaimed, pointing at Otto.
"And the one who cut the Robot's thruster power, stranding us here!" Otto added, sounding equally suspicious.
"This is messed-up." Sparx spoke up, readying his magnet hand.
"Don't do it, Sparx!" Chiro warned.
By now, Sparx, Nova and Otto had their weapons trained on one another, until Antauri got between them all. "Enough! Accusing each other will solve nothing." he declared.
"Antauri is right. Clearly, we're all a bit wound up and on edge from today, so we need to calm down," LJ explained. "Gibson, fix the Robot's computer so we can finish the test. In the meantime, everyone, including myself, is confined to their rooms until further notice."
"What if Gibson has the virus?" Sparx asked suspiciously on the way to his crimson tube. "He's been acting awfully innocent."
"Go." LJ said sharply.
"Shouldn't one of us keep an eye on Gibson?" Akito suggested. "Sparx might be onto something."
LJ made his way to the tube.
"Look, I'll keep an eye on Gibson," said Chiro. "Just in case something happens."
A dark look crossed Gibson's face. "Yes... Listen to the boy..." he remarked.
LJ stopped cold in his tracks. "Wait... That sounds like something that..."
"Skeleton King would say?" Gibson grinned darkly before he took out a remote and pushed the button.
Everyone soon screamed from within their tubes as Gibson betrayed them.
"You were right, Sparx... It is me!" Gibson grinned as he looked evil now. "I got the virus!"
"NOOO!" Kimberly and Chrissy cried out.
"You monster!" Akito snapped.
The Blue Monkey soon roared viciously as he began to transform into a brutal monster.
"This is just too demented!" Raul flinched. "Gibsonzilla!"
The mutated Gibson ran over to the control panel and began to type. "And I must complete my mission: the destruction of Shuggazoom City!" he announced.
"Gibson, come on! Let us out!" Chiro told the corrupted Monkey. "We can find a way to cure you!"
Gibson shook his head. "Oh, no. A cure is simply out of the question! There is far too much work to be done!" he declared.
"Hey! One deranged Monkey is not gonna destroy Shuggazoom!" Sparx remarked.
"Oh, but I am not alone," Gibson retorted fiendishly as he brought out a drilled hand, approaching Fuzzo. "I wasn't the only one infected by this disgusting creature!"
"Well, this sucks." Lynn complained.
"No, Gibson, NO!" Kimberly cried for poor little Fuzzo.
Fuzzo soon panicked and jumped all around the cage, but of course, wouldn't be able to escape.
"Gibson, please stop!" Kimberly cried as she buried her face in her hands.
"There now, Fuzzo," Gibson smirked. "No need for any sudden transformations...we're all friends here."
"Fuzzo, run!" Chiro shouted to the trembling little furball.
Gibson laughed deviously as he revealed both of his drill hands, but Fuzzo quickly wriggled free from his cage and bounded off into a ventilation pipe. The menacing monkey scowled. "No matter; I'll catch it eventually!" he decided.
"So, which one of us is infected?" Nova asked.
"You all should be," Gibson answered. "But somehow you've become immune to the virus. I'll have to dissect you later to learn why. As to who is infected... Isn't it obvious? The most powerful machine among us: The Super Robot!"
They soon heard very loud and creepy organ music that punctuated the mood like in a bad horror movie.
"I'll call you back, Mom." LJ said, answering his phone briefly before hanging back up like the music had come from his phone.
A horrific transformation soon surrounded the room as the kids and the other Robot Monkeys began to feel panicked and dreadful over what was happening. The Super Robot soon broke down on the ground and began to go through the same transformation as Fuzzo from earlier as well as the new and dangerously improved Gibson. The people of Shuggazoom City soon took off running in fear as they saw that happen.
"Don't you see?" Gibson snarled. "The Robot was sabotaging itself as it came under the influence of the virus! Now the infection is complete!"
"This is like a bad horror spoof or something." Lynn cringed, starting to feel very uncomfortable.
And at that, the group was sucked up the tubes, and strapped into their seats with thorny vines.
"Skeleton King Robot Monkey Team Destroyer Force Go!" Gibson shouted as the transmogrified Super Robot began to wreak havoc on Shuggazoom City.
The Super Robot snarled as Gibson laughed at the chaos and misery spread throughout Shuggazoom City.
"This is really quite delightful!" Gibson approved darkly.
The kids struggled and shook through their thorny vines, trying to break free. Fuzzo soon came in and freed Chiro before licking his face.
"Fuzzo!" Chiro laughed and smiled at the furball.
Fuzzo's slobber then dripped down onto the thorny vines and that seemed to melt and dissolve them like acid.
"That's it!" Chiro then smiled once he saw how useful that looked.
"Well, I'll be!" LJ grinned as Fuzzo licked at the restraint vines, dissolving them instantly.
"Monkey Team, can you hear me?" Chiro asked.
Several muffled grunts were his only reply.
"Too late, boys!" Gibson sneered. "Shuggazoom is DOOMED!"
"It's Fuzzo!" LJ exclaimed. "He's the cure! When he licked your faces, he made you all immune, except for Gibson!"
"Augh! I should've eliminated that beast when I had the chance!" Gibson snarled. "The robot will deal with you NOW!"
"I don't think so, Gibson!" LJ glared.
More thorned vines soon lashed out and snared up Fuzzo, taking him away.
"FUZZO!" LJ and Chiro cried out before they were taken next.
Fuzzo soon landed outside of the Super Robot, free from the prickly vines, but had to dodge laser eyes while on the outside. The Super Robot soon looked ready to step on the poor little furball.
"NOOOO!" LJ and Chiro panicked for their furry little friend.
But Fuzzo wasn't about to go down without a fight, and he grew to kaiju size in order to battle the corrupted Super Robot. Raul soon tried to reach for his belt buckle so that he could transform into Turbo Tigre which meant that he could use his tiger claws to cut and tear against the vines, but of course, he had quite a bit of trouble on the way. The Super Robot soon shot a darkened and painful laser blast from the mouth and soon shot right at Fuzzo, hitting him instantly. Fuzzo then snarled as he grabbed the Super Robot and soon tossed him aside, sending him flying, knocking down part of the bridge.
"DESTROY THAT... THAT... THING!" Gibson firmly ordered.
"NO!" Kimberly shouted. "I won't let you hurt Fuzzo!"
The little holographic orb floated out of the Super Robot and levitated over its faceplate before it shifted into Kimberly's smiling face.
"It's me, Kimberly!" The girl smiled. "Come on, Fuzzo! Gimme a lick! A nice, big, sloppy lick!"
Fuzzo beamed with glee and leapt onto the Super Robot, licking its face like a big playful dog.
"That's it, Fuzzo, way to go! Thatta boy!" Kimberly grinned in excitement.
"UGH! CUT THAT OUT, YOU STUPID, SLOBBERY FURBALL!" Gibson snapped.
"Gibson, I really don't like this new you." Kimberly shook her head firmly.
In a matter of minutes, the Super Robot changed back to its original form.
"Gotta love th' slobber!" Otto chuckled.
"NO...!" roared Gibson.
"Yeah, and it's time you gave it a try!" Chiro smirked, pushing a button and ejecting Gibson out of the Super Robot's back, and into Fuzzo's massive paw.
Long story short, he got a real tongue-lashing, but it was for his own good since it changed him back to normal.
"What the... Why am I covered in slobber?" exclaimed Gibson. When he saw how massive Fuzzo had grown, he nearly had a heart attack.
"He's back." The kids smiled at each other in relief.
"I guess I didn't need my claws that time." Raul commented.
Eventually, everyone met up in the Super Robot again and played with Fuzzo.
"Nice going, Kim," Chrissy said. "Of course he'd warm up to you, Little Miss Animal Lover."
"It just seemed so right." Kimberly smiled.
"Monkey Team, I have great news," Gibson announced. "I've located Fuzzo's home planet. He can go home!"
Chiro and Kimberly looked dismayed. "Awww... But he just got here!"
"If I recall correctly, his visit was always temporary." Gibson replied.
A sly smirk crossed Chiro's face. "Anybody else notice Gibson's acting sort of evil?" he asked.
"Whuh-oh," smirked Lynn.
"He's got the virus again~" Chrissy added.
"I-I do not!" Gibson protested.
Antauri decided to play along. "And there IS only one known cure..."
"Get 'im, Fuzzo!" Nova announced.
With a joyful yip, Fuzzo lunged at Gibson, covering his head in slobber, much to the scientific monkey's disgust. Everyone shared a fond laugh as another misadventure had come to a close for another day.
"Okay, Mom, what's up?" LJ smiled as he took a missed call back.
"I just want to make sure you're doing alright down there," Cherry said, sounding emotionless on the phone, but there was a hint of care in her voice. "This is a pretty big experience for you and your friends."
"I'm doing alright," LJ replied. "Sure, it's a big adventure, but we've got it taken care of!"
"I hope your cousin is playing nice with you," Cherry said. "Not that I doubt it, Akito's a pretty nice boy and he's a lot like his father... Also I hope that Chrissy and Kimberly aren't fighting each other."
"He's trying, even though the others get on him for always having to save the day and stealing Felicity's spotlight from under her," LJ replied. "Also, Kim and Chrissy are getting along nicely."
"Well, I'm glad to hear about those girls," Cherry nodded. "Also... I have a mother's intuition that's based on a guess, but... Do you like that Lynn Loud girl?" she then asked with a small smirk.
LJ coughed. "Well, she's an okay person." he replied, his face getting a little red.
"Just okay?" Cherry asked as a smirk began to creep on her face.
"...Alright, you got me," LJ replied, his face going fully-red. "I like her as well."
"Three girlfriends at your age?" Cherry smirked. "You get around more than that Ash Ketchum kid your sister and cousins would tell me about during their misadventures away from home."
"Funny, one of the group said something similar." LJ remarked.
"Well, that's my understanding of it," Cherry shrugged. "I've never seen one boy that age hang around so many girls. Well, if you like this Lynn Loud girl, I'll show you my support and I'll try to show even more after I meet her for dinner sometime."
"Okay!" LJ replied. "Thank you!"
"I'll be sending over a package pretty soon," Cherry then said. "Just a nice little care package so you don't feel too homesick."
"Thanks, Mom," LJ replied. "I can't wait to get it!"
"I'll see what I can do about mailing it over there," Cherry said warmly. "Now, now, you just remember to brush your teeth before you go to sleep and put on clean underwear tomorrow~... I'm your mother, it's my job to remind you to do that."
LJ blushed. "Oh, okay, okay, Mom." he replied.
Cherry smirked a bit. "That's a good boy," she then said. "Your sister Zofia misses you a bit too, though she seems to love hanging out at the library with that Richard Tyler boy and Mr. Dewey."
LJ smirked. "Well, we might get a break to visit her in the interim after a few more missions," he replied. "So I can't wait to come and see you all!"
"We look forward to your visit," Cherry replied. "I'll be sure to save plenty of pizza burgers just for you."
LJ beamed. "Aw, Mom; you rock out loud," he replied. "See you then!" he hung up.
"See you soon, dear." Cherry nodded before she then hung up too.
"Guess you're close with your mom?" Raul's voice asked from behind.
"Yeah, I am," LJ replied. "She isn't one for getting overly emotional when it comes to joy, but it's pretty obvious she cares about me and my sibs."
"Your mom confuses me sometimes," Raul shrugged. "She says she's very happy and excited, but I don't think I've ever seen her smile. She's kinda like that Mandy kid from Endsville."
"Pffft, get real," LJ retorted. "Unlike that slime, my mom is actually capable of caring for others besides herself. And she can smile without breaking the fabric of reality."
"Oh, uh, sorry, dude," Raul grinned sheepishly. "I didn't mean to make your old lady sound terrible. You should see MY mom when I accidentally eat a batch of fried bananas she made for herself."
"Hm..." LJ muttered. "I'll keep that in mind."
Raul grinned nervously and soon backed away.
"That Raul Rivera, I swear..." LJ shook his head to himself.
"LJ Schwartz... What a curious case..." Raul remarked to himself as he walked on. "Hopefully his mom doesn't haunt my nightmares... Hopefully she doesn't hear me either..." he then said with large black eyes that could easily resemble a deer in headlights before he shuddered and kept walking off. "Oh, well. Might as well call Mom and Dad while I'm thinking about it."
LJ went back to his room and decided to chill some more for the time being. Everyone else did the same, but especially Chiro, who while liking being apart of the Super Robot Monkey Team, kind of wish he had some more time to himself and didn't have to go off at a moment's notice so quickly and suddenly, though alas, it was quite the price to pay while being a superhero and all. He would learn more about this in the next upcoming adventure of course.