Buttercup skipped dinner again. Not because she wasn't hungry, but because she didn't want to see Him's stupid red face again. Thankfully he was only around for one day, Boomer explained to her that he only ever came round on Sundays. Buttercup decided she would make a point to never be around when he was.
She woke the next morning with a loud knocking on her door. Groggily, she got up and opened it. It was Mojo.
"The hell do you want?" She griped.
Mojo tutted, "Language please, Buttercup. Time to get dressed. You have school today."
Buttercup sneered, "Why the fuck do you care?"
Mojo pursed his lips, ignoring the teen's continued foul language, "Because as your guardian I have a responsibility to see that you receive your legally mandatory education that ensures you have good prospects in the future."
Buttercup scowled and rolled her eyes, turning over and burying herself under her duvet. Mojo didn't seem to like that, and yanked away the blanket, causing Buttercup to yelp in surprise.
"What the hell, man!" She yelled, shooting out of bed into the air and glaring down at the chimp.
"Get dressed," Mojo merely said, and he left the room.
"Screw you!" Buttercup called after him as he closed the door. Fuming, Buttercup lowered, sitting on her bed grumpily. She stayed that way for a good few minutes, stewing in her frustration, before finally getting round to actually getting dressed.
She haphazardly threw off the blue jumper and grey sweatpants she had worn the previous day, and had ended up sleeping in; and replaced them with a pink tank top and pale, ripped jeans. A massively oversized black zip up hoodie was added along with a pair of big black boots. Atop her head she affixed a red headband to keep her messy bangs out of her eyes. Grabbing her phone, she stuffed it into her pocket and flew out of the bedroom.
Brick was in the living room, chatting on the phone with someone, a bored look on his face. In one hand he held a glass of what looked like a gross protein shake that he randomly took gulps of in between sentences. From the bathroom came the sound of running water and surprisingly melodic singing. It was unclear who's voice it was, but Buttercup's bet was on Boomer. He seemed the sort of guy to sing in the shower.
Shrugging the hood of her jacket over her head, Buttercup headed to the kitchen. Mojo was inside, cooking something on the stove. He noticed Buttercup enter and smiled at her condescendingly.
"Good, you are dressed. That wasn't so hard, now was it, Buttercup?"
Buttercup glared at him. "I'm not going to school," she said.
Mojo looked unphased, "Yes, you are." He continued his cooking. "I have already phoned your principal and told her you would be reattending as of this morning."
"I'm not going," Buttercup repeated childishly. "I don't want to, and you can't make me."
Mojo just hummed, and plated up the sausage and eggs he had been frying before setting them down on the table along with some cutlery. He nodded to it, "Eat. You missed dinner. I won't have you turning anorexic," the chimp said as casually as one walk speak about the weather.
Buttercup stared at him in disbelief. He had really just said that to her? "The fuck?"
Mojo pursed his lips disapprovingly, "Language, Buttercup," he chastised. "Now eat. You'll be late for school."
Buttercup's eye twitched, "I already said I don't want to go."
Mojo's disapproval deepened, "And why is that? What reason do you have that will sway me into allowing you to stay home?"
Buttercup once again stared in disbelief. Why? "My family just fucking died, remember?" She snarled.
Mojo's sighed, "That was weeks ago, Buttercup. Now eat your breakfast. You're going to school."
With a low growl, Buttercup batted harshly at the plate on the table. It crashed to the floor, sausage and egg scattering and the plate cracking into three.
"I don't want breakfast, and I'm not going to school. Leave me the fuck alone!"
"Will you shut up! I'm on the phone!" Came Brick's voice from the living room, which only aggravated Buttercup further. She let out a snarl and flew off, out of the kitchen and through the still broken front door, Mojo calling after her.
Buttercup flew for a long time, her anger finally dying down near the outskirts of Townsville.
Drifting down to the ground, she found herself in a small, rundown park in a mostly residential area of the city. Not quite suburban, but not exactly urban. The place was decrepit, looking forgotten. There were few people around, and those who were looked just as worn down as the area.
Buttercup sat down on a creaky swing, hands wrapped around the iron chains, and legs lazily rocking the swing back and forth. She solemnly observed her surroundings, thoughts whizzing by in her mind, too fast for her to focus on any in detail. She didn't know how long she stayed there, but the sun was high in the sky by the time anything interesting enough happened to make Buttercup escape her mind.
Slinking their way down the street was the Gangreen Gang. Buttercup eyed them suspiciously. They hadn't seen her yet, and Buttercup hoped they weren't up to anything illegal. She wasn't in the mood for busting them. She wasn't in the mood for any form of crime fighting. It didn't feel right without her sisters.
The gang were talking amongst themselves, and Buttercup could hear them laughing from all the way across the road. As they made to cross from the opposite pavement to the one nearer the park, they finally spotted Buttercup. Their laughter stopped and Ace held out his arms to halt his gang before they crossed the road. He stared at Buttercup with as much suspicion as Buttercup was staring at him with.
Buttercup looked away, trying to ignore the man. She pulled her hood tight out of anxiety, head bowed in effort to hide the tears that were now pricking at her eyes. Why was she crying? Hadn't she gotten over all that already? And why now? When the Gangreen Gang were nearby.
"Buttercup?" Came a voice, a hand gently landing on her shoulder; and Buttercup shot up off the swing and into the air, startled, looking down at who had spoken. It was Ace.
Buttercup sniffed, wiping quickly at her eyes and shaping her face into a glare, "What do you want?" She snapped.
"Are you okay, chica?" Little Arturo asked, looking up at the flying girl.
"We heard about your dad and your ssssissssterssss," Snake added.
"Billy is sad about what happened," said Big Billy with an empathetic frown.
"Plfhhhhb," agreed Grubber.
Buttercup's face melted a little but she caught herself and scowled, balling her fists, "Whatever," she griped. "Leave me alone." She floated down a ways and sat back down on the swing looking up at the clouds so she didn't have to see the gang and end up bursting into tears.
There was silence for a moment, the Gangreen Gang glancing at one another in contemplation.
"I don't think we will, eh boys?" Ace said.
"Yeah, bosssss," Snake agreed.
"So what are ya doin out here anyway? Never seen you in this part of the city before," Ace asked, leaning against the swing set. "Ain't you supposed to be in school or something? Or is it the holidays? I never keep track of this stuff."
Buttercup kicked the ground lightly, debating briefly wether or not to ignore him. "I'm skipping," she admitted finally, still not looking at him.
The gang looked surprised.
"But, you're a Powerpuff," Snake said.
Buttercup glared at him, with balled up fists and hovering in the air again so that she was taller than the man, "Like that means anything now? My sisters are dead," she spat. "The Powerpuff Girls don't exist anymore. Why can't anyone understand that!"
"Hey, woah, kid," Ace interrupted. "He just meant that ain't you a good guy?"
Buttercup bristled but her feet were planted on the floor again. She huffed, shoving her hands in her pockets. "Just because I was a hero, doesn't mean anything. I don't automatically do whatever people tell me to do. Especially if that person is Mojo Jojo," Buttercup scoffed.
"Mojo Jojo? What'ssss he got to do with anything?" Asked Snake, confused.
Buttercup grumbled, kicking at the ground, harder than before. "He's my fucking guardian until I'm eighteen," she huffed. "Just because he struck some stupid deal with the mayor, and 'cause he's technically responsible for my creation." She got angrier the more she spoke. "I mean, just 'cause he's my guardian now doesn't mean he can tell me what to do. 'Eat your breakfast, Buttercup. Get dressed, Buttercup. Go to school. Watch your language. Go to your room. Don't punch Him in his stupid red face.'" Buttercup was pacing in the air now, gliding back and forth through the wind, and the Gangreen Gang watched her in stunned silence as she ranted. "Who does he think he is? He's not my dad! My dad is fucking dead! And now I'm stuck with an evil monkey for ten months. It's been three days and I can't fucking stand it already!" She stopped in her tracks, realising what she had just done. She had spilled her guts to the Gangreen Gang of all people. She scowled, floating up into the air and laying down on the top of the swing set, trying to forget herself.
"Sounds rough, kid," Ace said finally. His voice was gentle and empathetic.
"Plrrffbbb," said Grubber, and while Buttercup didn't understand him, he sounded sincere and kind.
"Whatever," Buttercup grumbled. "What are you guys doing here anyway? Don't you have somewhere else to be? Some other person to be bothering?"
"Not really," said Ace. "We just got done what we came over this side of town to do. Our whole days all freed up now."
"What were you doing?" Buttercup asked in curiosity.
"We was collecting Snake," said Ace.
"I jusssst finisssshed work," Snake affirmed.
Buttercup sat up and looked down at the gang, "You've got a job?" She asked in surprise.
"Si," said Arturo. "Me an' the boss do too."
"Huh," Buttercup muttered. She didn't know that. She supposed it wasn't too surprising, but still. The Gangreen Gang, with jobs? She couldn't help but wonder what they did, but felt like it was too intrusive to ask.
Just then, Buttercup's stomach growled loudly. She grumbled under her breath in frustration. She wished she hadn't skipped dinner, and that she hadn't refused the breakfast Mojo made for her.
Ace snickered, "You hungry or something?"
"Your stomach sounds like a freaking tiger," Arturo laughed too.
Buttercup rolled her eyes. "Piss off," she muttered halfheartedly.
Ace let out a small laugh, "I think it's time for lunch, eh boys?"
The gang uttered words of approval and made ready to leave. Buttercup watched them and was about to sit back down on the swing, frowning at the loss of the company that she didn't realise she had been enjoying, when Ace looked back at her.
"You coming, or what, kid?" He winked, and Buttercup smiled a surprised smile, heading over to walk beside him.
They walked for a while, travelling into the centre of the city, and eventually stopped at a McRonald's. Not long later the gang and Buttercup were sitting in the forested outskirts of the city centre park, eating burgers and fries, while Buttercup eyed the volcano in the middle of the large field through the trees with narrowed eyes.
Despite the proximity to Mojo Jojo's home, Buttercup was having fun. She was reminded of the time she had spent with the Gangreen Gang when she was a little girl. While that time had ended badly, she felt like Ace and the gang were being sincere with her now. They hadn't done anything remotely criminal in a long time, despite the odd shoplifting incident, and the seemed like they had grown up a lot since they were unruly teenagers; Buttercup had reasoned with her quarrelling mind.
She watched as the gang joked around with one another. They felt like a family, teasing each other and giving advice. Arturo and Grubber got into a fight over something that Buttercup couldn't decipher, and she observed as Ace set them both straight before all three went back to laughing and chatting amiably. They seemed more like brothers than Brick, Butch, and Boomer did. She had rarely seen those three interact with each other like siblings at all. There was a tension between three that was hard to pick up on, but was always there. In all honesty, it reminded her of her and her sisters. They never really acted like siblings. They never talked, hard as it was to admit.
Buttercup couldn't help but feel envious of Ace and the gang. She felt the need to be included, though she purposefully kept herself separated from them by sitting up on a low tree branch off to the side. She still felt suspicious of the men, remembering fully well what had happened when she was younger.
An hour or so passed there in the outskirts of the park, and Buttercup's phone buzzed in her pocket. Pulling it out and looking at it, she had gotten a text from an unknown number.
'Buttercup,' it read. 'This is Mojo Jojo. Where are you?'
Buttercup bristled, glaring at her phone before shoving it roughly back into her pocket. "How the fuck did he get my number?" She muttered.
"What's wrong?" Ace asked, looking at her.
Buttercup let out a frustrated huff, "Doesn't matter," she said. "Just Mojo."
Ace looked at her oddly, but nodded, turning his attention back to his gang and the argument now going on between Arturo and Billy over the last portion of fries.
The day moved on quickly after than, Buttercup receiving more and more texts from Mojo. She ignored each one, in favour of focusing on her time spent with the Gangreen Gang. They roamed the streets of Townsville for a while before heading to the shack in the middle of the dump, where they watched TV and played card games as the sun sunk below the horizon.
Once again, Buttercup's phone buzzed in her pocket. Pulling it out and looking at it, she had gotten yet ankther text from Mojo. 'Buttercup. This is Mojo Jojo,' it read, much like the other messages. 'Stop ignoring me. It is past nine o'clock at night. Mojo is wanting you back home right now, young lady, or you are grounded.' Buttercup was going to ignore him again, but she then got a text from Miss Bellum.
'Buttercup, sweetie. Mojo says you ran off. Where are you? Are you safe? Please, go home. It's not safe outside at night. Even if you have superpowers.'
"Why'd he tell her?" Buttercup wondered in frustration, and the gang looked at her, distracted from their show. Clearly she had spoken aloud without realising. "Sorry," she put on a wry smile.
"What's up?" Ace asked curiously.
Buttercup shook her head, "Mojo," she gestured to her phone. "And Miss Bellum." She sent a quick text to the woman telling her she was fine before coming to the conclusion that she probably should head back to Mojo's home. She knew she was only delaying the inevitable. She stood. "I should get going," she said.
Ace nodded, he too standing and leading the girl to the door.
"It was fun hanging out with you guys," Buttercup smiled.
Ace grinned, "Any time, kid," he said. "You've got our number," he winked.
"You mean that? Or are you just trying to be polite?" Buttercup teased, though her voice held slight anxiety. She had enjoyed today, and hoped she really could hang out with the gang again.
Ace laughed, "Ya know me, kid. When am I ever polite?" He reached out and ruffled Buttercup's hair.
Buttercup ducked away, batting at his hand lightly, laughing. "Have a good night, Ace," she smiled. "You too!" She called to the rest of the gang as she left the shack. They responded with 'goodbyes' as she flew off.
She made her way to the ramshackle house, where Mojo was waiting for her when she got in. His arms were crossed and he looked disgruntled. On the sofa, Butch, Brick, and Boomer were watching with anticipation and, in Boomer's case, concern. Butch even had the gall to be scoffing down popcorn.
"Buttercup," Mojo pursed his lips.
"What?" Buttercup gruffed as she stepped through the front door, crossing her own arms and staring down at the chimp. Her good mood had been immediately shattered as soon as she had crossed the threshold.
"Do not play dumb with Mojo Jojo," Mojo gruffed. "You disobeyed me, continued to use profane language despite warnings, smashed a plate, ran off without letting anyone know where you were going, and you did not attend school today."
"So?" Buttercup sneered.
"So? That is all you are having to say?" Mojo exclaimed.
Buttercup shrugged, an act of nonchalance. "I told you this morning I didn't want to go."
"Wether you go to school or not is not your decision. It is up to me, as your guardian, to make sure you go. You are still a child, you have to attend school."
"Do I look like I care?" Buttercup scowled. "I didn't want to go today, and I didn't fucking ask you to be my guardian, so get off my back already."
"Mojo already warned you this morning about your language, young lady."
"I. Don't. Give. A. Shit."
Mojo took in a slow breath and his voice grew dangerous. "Mojo has been lenient with you, but he is drawing the line here. Mojo Jojo will not be tolerating your angst and disobedience any longer. From now on you will not be missing anymore meals; you will not use such crass language; you will control your temper; and you will be escorted to school every day."
"Or what?"
"Or you will be grounded, missy."
Buttercup scoffed, "Oh please, like that's gonna stop me from doing anything."
"Mojo is tired of your disrespect! Mojo doesn't know how Professor Utonium could handle such an ungrateful, misbehaving child."
Buttercup's eyes grew dark and she stooped down, bringing her face close to Mojo's. "Don't you fucking dare even say his name. I don't give a shit about respecting you, you jumped up, arrogant little monkey." With each sentence, she punctuated it with a sharp jab of her finger into the chimp'a shoulder. "Just because the mayor says I have to live with you, doesn't mean you can try act like you're my dad!" Every syllable brought deeper frustration into Mojo's face, and by the time Buttercup's rant was through he looked absolutely livid.
"Go to your room young lady!" He barked.
"Make me!" Buttercup snarled.
Mojo's eyes narrowed, "Boys," he snapped, and Brick, Butch, and Boomer flew over in an instant.
"Yes mum," They chorused, Brick and Butch grabbing Buttercup by each arm and proceeding to drag her away to her room.
She struggled but the boys were too strong. Boomer led the way, opening the door as Brick and Butch shoved her inside. Buttercup saw briefly an apologetic look on Boomer's face before the bedroom door was shut on her. She heard the sound of a bolt being drawn. There hadn't been one affixed to her door before, and a sense of dread and rage coursed through her veins.