A/N  This is probably the shortest chapter I'll ever write (word count is I think 701).  But I was dying to update, and last week was insane.  (I had only a week to do a 30 minute presentation on Lord of the Rings for my Literature and Film class, and a promotion test for Tae Kwon, on top of everything else, but I think they went well- I broke my first board on my first try in TKD!  I was nervous, so needless to say, I was very happy after that ^_^.)  Anyway, back on topic, I think as short as this chapter is; it works almost better by itself rather than put in as a scene in a longer chapter.  Well, regardless, I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Six: Ponderings

Professor Utonium checked his watch. Why, oh why did it have to be this day when the University had to have a crucial business meeting? If he missed the meeting, which was going on longer than planned, his job would be at stake. He was after all only temporary faculty, and they may not hire him on full time. On the other hand, if he put off trying to find out what was wrong with his girls, their lives could be at stake. The Professor was torn. Normally it seemed that finding out what was wrong with the girls would be the obvious choice, they were always more important to him than his career, but he knew, or at least had a pretty good theory what it was, and if that were the case, wherever the source of antidote X was, the damage was done, and let's face it, he needed the job to help him fund his private research. He already figured out in his head what he could do to help them, but there was another problem he had to solve before any treatment could be beneficial. If it was indeed antidote X, it was obviously coming to them in small doses, judging by their symptoms. But where was it coming from?

Throughout the meeting he pondered where it might be coming from, which was all he could do while stuck in there. Perhaps it was in the atmosphere, and they were breathing the rare antidote X in gas form. He'd have to check the air quality in their home as soon as he could get out of the blasted meeting. Or maybe they were being exposed in some other way, such as food or drink.

He shook his head; that probably wasn't it. Besides, how would it be possible? Unless… he considered the water supply, but then he remembered the strict security measures Townsville Power and Water maintained, and the water quality was tested frequently. If there was a foreign chemical in the water, he would know. Because of his position at the university, he would be one of the first ones contacted. Of course it wouldn't hurt to check. He added that to his growing to do list.

But the question that invaded his mind which bothered him the most besides where did it come from, especially considering the Professor was the sole owner of the only known sample of antidote X, was who. Who else had antidote X? They would certainly have to be smart enough to know that antidote X was the Powerpuff Girls only physical weakness. Unfortunately, the only ones who knew about it had either moved away long ago, were serving time in prison, or had given up on crime completely. It was possible that those who had given up on crime hadn't really, but with the exception of Princess, none of them had the resources, or smarts to carry it out. It couldn't be Princess because she was on tight surveillance by Townsville police and her father who was tired of bailing her out of jail all the time, besides, she would be breaking parole.  Had one of the villains who moved away moved back? Professor Utonium was giving himself a headache thinking about it.

But that was beside the point. The point was that someone had somehow managed to poison his girls with the only thing capable of harming them. Someone somewhere knew that it was only a matter of time before the Powerpuff girls grew weak enough to be beaten. Most likely they also knew that time was soon. The studies he had conducted on the chemical X and its antidote had shown that once the antidote started taking effect, which sometimes took longer than others, it worked fast. The more antidote X, the faster it worked, although it only took the tiniest sample of the antidote to take on a large amount of the chemical. There was an excellent chance that someone knew this as well. As deadly as antidote X had the potential to be, thinking about the perpetrator who poisoned them, the Professor feared that antidote X might be the least of their immediate worries.

The Professor looked at his watch again. He needed to get home.

A/N And now ladies and gents, the thank yous!

Hairy Gregory:  Don't worry, Blossom and Greg will come around soon and get off their insecure and confused butts and talk.  That will be resolved!  About your other note, I normally don't have that many commitments and this is a culture shock because it's been ages since I've been this busy.  But I find the less time I have, the more I get done.  And don't worry, as busy as I am, I will not forget about and abandon this fic…I hate it when people do that! (Although it's understandable I suppose why some people do)

Pilfered Sympathy: Cool.  I like getting reviews, so it's a deal!  Hope you're enjoying it!

Raskolin Phoenix: Writing relaxes me too, I always find time to write, unfortunately though when I start, I get so caught up in it that it takes so much more time than planned sometimes, so I have to discipline myself to stop (which is hard to do when our minds flooded with ideas galore). Sometimes I start writing something, then I'm shocked to see how much time had past, and stuff I need to do get neglected.  That was my problem last year.  But still, I love to write, that also why I'm an English major.  The girls are in denial, plus they've taken their powers and good health for granted, so that's why they're not that worried…yet.

Firestarter10388: Really?  One of the best PPG fics ever? Aww shucks!  Thanks!  Keep the reviews coming!

And remember, if you're reading, but not reviewing, I beg you to review!  You can do it!  I believe in you, it's not that hard!  I like to know who's reading, and if it's caught on to more people.  Anonymous reviews and constructive criticisms are welcomed too!  Please review!  Thanks!