Disclaimer: I don't own this cartoon and its characters.

A/N: How will Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 4's relationship turn out? What will Father do? What's going on with the rest? You'll find out most of that… NOW!

When love's not enough

Chapter 12

The sun was rising. It was early morning, and in a mansion down the lane from the KND Treehouse of Sector V, five glassy blue-eyed children walked down a long hall, on their way to finish the battle they had started a long time ago. It was now time to destroy Sector V, once and for all!

Everything had been planned carefully. There was nothing left to wonder about this time. They knew exactly what to do, and how to do it.

"We shall not fail this time," they said to themselves in unison. "It is not possible now. Not with our evil plans. Father will be proud of us."

They walked through a door that led to a garage. It held several big machines and robots that were useless against Sector V and their 2x4 technology. The Delightful Children had had to find that out the hard way. This time they were using the biggest and most destructive one of them. And they knew exactly how to use it this time.

The machine was more like a big ship. But there was five claws installed in the front of it. Five claws to fit the number of KND operatives they were going to capture and place in the back of the ship. In the back was a big empty room, made to hold captives. At the backside of the ship there was a big platform that was for the moment the back wall. The cockpit of the ship could be taken off to abandon the rest of it and be used as a smaller ship. The back of the ship had no flying functions. It was merely a prison cell with a platform. Nothing more.

The five children walked onboard and got comfortable in the cockpit. They looked at each other with evil grins. Then the blond boy in the front pulled out a key from the front pocket of his jacket. Father had given them permission to use this ship for today's battle. In fact, there was not going to be a battle. The Delightful Children From Down the Lane had an idea that made them unstoppable.

Meanwhile, in the Treehouse:

Numbuh 4 was up, now making his way to his room. He had woken up a few minutes ago, a little startled as he remembered what had happened the night before. And the fact that he was sleeping next to his love made him even more freaked out. He was afraid of the changes. What would happen now, now that they had admitted their love for each other and kissed? He wasn't so sure if he wanted to know. He wasn't exactly found of changes. But don't get him wrong, he was happy they had told each other about their feelings of one another. And he was especially happy they had kissed. He had wanted that to happen for a long time. Now it had. But this was the morning after the night, and it left him with so many thoughts that his head was about to burst!

He reached his room and got out of his pajamas to change into his everyday clothes. He knew he couldn't sleep any longer. He was too awake for it now anyway. But he was getting hungry, so he decided to go get some cereal.

Numbuh 1 and Numbuh 5 were already up, both of them sitting by the table as he came in.

"Numbuh 4?" Numbuh 5 said surprised. "Is that really you, or is Numbuh 5 going insane?"

"What?" he replied and raised his arms. "I'm awake. What's so strange about that?"

"Have you checked the time?" she asked and raised an eyebrow. "It's only seven AM!"

"Well, I couldn't sleep any longer," he muttered and made his way over to the counter. He looked over at his leader. "Why are you up so early? Shouldn't you rest some more?"

"Like you, I couldn't sleep any longer," he replied. He carefully twirled around his glass of orange juice on the table. At least he had taken a few sips of it, but it really wasn't all that tempting. He had lost his appetite.

Numbuh 4 got himself a bowl of cereal and sat down by the table. He leaned his head on his hand, and looked across the table at Numbuh 1. "I wonder why the Delightfuls haven't attacked us yet. It's been two days now. I was certain they'd do it yesterday before lunch."

"Who knows?" Numbuh 1 replied. "Maybe they're plotting something bigger right now as we speak. I have a feeling we're not through with them yet. And Father must be furious about losing the battle."

"Numbuh 5 thinks he's got something up his sleeve," Numbuh 5 muttered thoughtfully.

"Yes, we're starting to know him now," Numbuh 1 agreed. "He's planning something, alright."

"Maybe we should get the heck outta here before they attack, then?" Numbuh 4 asked, his eyes wide.

"No, we have to stay here and wait," Numbuh 1 replied. "The Kids Next Door won't run!"

Numbuh 4 thought about it, and then he grinned evilly. "Yeah, let's beat the crud outta them!"

"Good morning!" a cheerful voice called from the door. Everybody turned to see Numbuh 3 standing there and waving at them with a green sleeve-covered hand.

"Hi, Kuki!" Numbuh 4 said, happy to see her. When he noticed that the two others were glaring strangely at him, he blushed. "Err… I mean, Numbuh 3…"

Numbuh 1 and Numbuh 5 exchanged sly looks, both of them smiling.

Numbuh 3 walked over to Numbuh 4. "I noticed you left early," she said, her smile fading.

"Well, I… I didn't want to bother you, so…" he replied, avoiding eye contact while scratching his arm awkwardly. "And besides, I was getting hungry. And since I was already awake, I went here to get some food."

"Oh, okay," she said. "I was worried something was wrong. I looked for you in your room, but you weren't there. Then I thought I'd check the kitchen. How long have you been up?"

"Like fifteen minutes," he answered.

"Numbuh 3, can I talk to you over there for a sec?" Numbuh 5 asked and got up from the chair while pointing over to the door.

"Sure thing, Numbuh 5!" Numbuh 3 twittered, and skipped after the African American over to the door that led to the hall.

"Girl talk, huh?" Numbuh 4 muttered and dipped his spoon in the cereal.

"Yep." Numbuh 1 shined his shades on his shirt. "They have obviously started to do that more often now. I'm glad they can be such good friends, though." He checked the shades by holding them up towards the light, and put them on as he registered they were clean. Then he smiled slyly at the blond Australian. "Is there something going on between you and Numbuh 3 now, Numbuh 4?"

Numbuh 4 was eating a spoon of cereal at the moment, and he now choked on it. He coughed for a while. Then he stared at his leader in shock. "Err… I-I… Well… I thought, well… Is that… wrong?"

"Well, not really…" Numbuh 1 muttered. "But you do remember what I told you all about having feelings for fellow operatives, right?"

Numbuh 4 was about to nod, but Numbuh 1 explained it over again before he got that far.

"If you have feelings for someone on your own team, you can barely concentrate about your work. Your emotions get in the way, and if this certain person gets hurt during a battle, you will not be able to your best. You'll be worried about his or her wellbeing. I for one did not allow it in my team in the beginning, but since nothing happened, I thought I wouldn't have to mention it again. I figured we could all live together as coworkers. Then I realized how much you all meant to me, and started to think that it was a stupid policy. Though it was right about the boyfriend-girlfriend part… Since there are feelings stronger than friendship between you and Numbuh 3, I'm just worried about you. What if Numbuh 3 gets hurt in a battle, Numbuh 4? Have you thought about that?"

"But…But I've had a crush on her for a very long time!" Numbuh 4 protested. "And I've done my job just fine!"

"Have you told her how you feel about her yet?" Numbuh 1 asked.

"Yeah, I have…" the Aussie answered. "I told her that night I took off and got kidnapped by those Delightful Creeps!"

"Oh, so that's why you left that night?"

Numbuh 4 nodded. "She misunderstood what I said, so I got cranky and left. That's pretty much it."

"Well, I understood you two have been arguing a little," Numbuh 1 muttered.

"Yeah, we have, but it doesn't matter," Numbuh 4 said. "Everything's just fine now. Better than ever, I would say." A smile lit up his face.

"Is that so, huh?" the British asked with a sly grin.

As the two boys were talking over by the table, the two girls had been talking as well, out in the hall.

"You didn't tell me he was in your room!" Numbuh 5 said with an irritated yet sly voice. Her amber eyes were sparkling with enthusiasm. "C'mon, Numbuh 5 wants to hear some details!"

Numbuh 3 giggled. "Well, it wasn't exactly planned. He came into my room last night when I was sleeping. He woke me up by mistake, but I was happy he did. We talked a little, and I told him I loved him…"

Numbuh 5 gasped with excitement. "You did? Oh my! What did he say?"

"Well, he had already told me that he loved me," Numbuh 3 replied. "He told me up at the Moon Base. Remember I told you about Numbuh 86 and all?"

"Oh, yeah…" Numbuh 5 said thoughtfully. "Yeah, he did tell you when we were up there. Aww, that's so cute!"

"I know!" Numbuh 3 exclaimed and folded her hands under her chin. "And last night… we hugged. It was the best ever."

Numbuh 5 grinned. "And then-?"

Numbuh 3 bit her lower lip, still smiling widely. "And then… he kissed me!"

"No way!"

"Yeah way!"

The two girls cheered a little in unison.

"That's what Numbuh 5's talking about! You go, girl!"

"And we kissed a little more before we went to sleep," Numbuh 3 told her. "And he fell asleep with his arms around me. Oh, it was so perfect!"

"I'm so happy for you, girl," Numbuh 5 said and hugged the Japanese. "You guys are finally a couple. I've been waiting so long for this; two of my best friends, together!"

"I'm happy, too," Numbuh 3 said as they let go of each other again. "But I don't know if we're a couple. See, I woke up alone this morning. I had been expecting to see him sleeping next to me, but he wasn't there. So I got a bad feeling about it. But he said he'd woken up and didn't want to bother me…"

"Yeah, I heard that, "Numbuh 5 replied. "But that only means he respects you, though. He respects your privacy, and if I were you, I'd be happy."

"Well, I'm not that happy about it," Numbuh 3 muttered. "I'd much rather wake up and see him sleeping next to me, or be awake and star at me with his beautiful green eyes… Oh, he's so perfect!"

Numbuh 5 laughed. "Either way, you two are going to be together, and nothing can break you apart now!"

"You're right!"

Suddenly, a guy's voice was heard further down the hall: "Wow, I never knew girly gossip could be this interesting!"

The two girls turned their heads to see Numbuh 2 walking towards them.

"That was really something," he giggled. "I'll go bug Numbuh 4 right away!"

"No, you ain't!" Numbuh 5 growled and grabbed a hold of his arm. "And for how long have you been standing over there and listening?"

"Oh, just a little while," he told them. "I heard something about someone kissing someone, and then I just had to listen! I didn't know you two were getting down, Numbuh 3!" He laughed.

"Shut up, man!" Numbuh 5 snapped.

"Yeah, Numbuh 4 and I just kissed," Numbuh 3 said annoyed and placed her hands on her hips. "It's not really that big a deal."

"Yes, it is!" Numbuh 2 replied and grinned. He then walked away from the girls and into the kitchen. "Hey, Numbuh 4! How was last night?"

The poor Australian just stared at him, his chin practically hitting the floor.

Numbuh 2 made kissing sounds before he slapped his thighs and laughed loudly.

Numbuh 4 was dumbfounded for a moment, his face completely red. Then he finally managed to shout: "Nothing happened!"

"Oh, sure!" Numbuh 2 exclaimed ironically and laughed again. "'Cause you didn't kiss her at all, did you?"

"S-shut up!" Numbuh 4 stuttered irritated.

"I'm sorry, Numbuh 4!" Numbuh 3 called from the door. "That big moron overheard the conversation me and Numbuh 5 were having."

"You told her, too?" he cried.

"Alright, guys," Numbuh 1 said calmly. "Try to ease down a little, okay?"

"What?" Numbuh 2 said innocently. "I'm allowed to laugh a little, ain't I?" He turned his head towards an annoyed Aussie. "I never knew you were such a Romeo, Numbuh 4!" He then laughed again.

"Shut it!" Numbuh 4 snapped and clenched his fists.

All of the sudden, like lighting from a blue sky, the wall of the kitchen was blasted open. Pieces of wood flew everywhere. The counter was splintered.

As trained, the five operatives threw themselves down on the floor, protecting their heads.

Numbuh 1 looked up and lowered his eyebrows as he saw what had invaded their Treehouse.

"Good morning, Kids Next Door!" the five voices said in unison. "Care to join us for breakfast?" Five metal claws were shot out from the front of the Delightful Children's ship.

"Spread out!" Numbuh 1 shouted to his team. It only took them a moment to get up from the floor and start running. Numbuh 1 himself ran through the TV room. Numbuh 2 was right behind him.

"What are we supposed to do now?" hollered Numbuh 2, panting heavily.

"We have to get to one of the ships!" Numbuh 1 replied and tried to speed up. "Any of them will do! Now, hurry up!"

Numbuh 5 had made a run for it down the hall. Numbuh 3 followed right behind.

Numbuh 4 had stayed in the kitchen to throw something at the ship. He threw some kitchenware before he realized he couldn't break the glass of their ship this time. Then he ran out of there, down the hall after the girls. Two of the big metal claws were after him. He tried to run faster.

Two claws were after Numbuh 1 and Numbuh 2 as well now. The two boys had noticed them, and they now tried to run as fast as they possibly could.

"They've used these kinds of claws here before!" Numbuh 1 called out to the mechanic. "Remember the time they turned me into an adult?"

"Yeah!" came Numbuh 2's reply. "They sure do love them!"

Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 5 were way ahead of Numbuh 4. They tried to get to a weapon storage.

"Numbuh 5 – what do you think they want with us this time?" Numbuh 3 asked as they ran.

"Frankly, Numbuh 5 doesn't wanna know!" Numbuh 5 shot back. "Keep running!"

About a hall behind came Numbuh 4. He was gaining on the girls now. Forcing his mind to think, he tried to come up with the best way to get away from the claws that were after him. He suddenly noticed a wooden box down the hall. Above it was a branch. He got an idea. As he got closer to the box, he jumped up on it and grabbed a hold of the branch. The two claws passed him.

"Hah!" he exclaimed with a grin and let himself fall to the floor between the two big wires that belonged to the claws. "They ain't so smart." But his smile faded as he remembered that the two girls were further down the next hall. His eyes grew wider. "Numbuh 3!" Then he started to chase the two claws.

Numbuh 2 suddenly tripped as he stepped on a loose shoelace. He cried out as he fell to the floor.

Numbuh 1 turned around to see him get caught by one of the claws. "Numbuh 2!"

"Save yourself!" Numbuh 2 shouted and tried to squirm out of the hard grip the claw held around his waist.

Numbuh 1 was about to turn around and keep running, but when he noticed the other metal claw coming for him, he tried to look for a diversionary maneuver to get away from it.

Numbuh 5 suddenly noticed the two metal claws coming after them. "Numbuh 3 – don't look back!"

"What?" Curious, the Japanese turned her head to see the two claws as well. She screamed and tried to speed up. Gaining on Numbuh 5, she grabbed a hold of the African American's arm. "We gotta go faster!"

"Numbuh 5 can't run much longer!"

"You have to!"

Numbuh 5 stepped on a loose floorboard and started to lose her balance. Since Numbuh 3 held onto her, she also lost balance. Both girls fell to the floor, crying out in unison. Numbuh 5 got up quickly.

"Come on!" she called.

But before Numbuh 3 could get up from the floor again, one of the claws grabbed her around the waist. "No!" she cried. "Numbuh 5 – help!"

Numbuh 5 turned around. She knew there wasn't anything she could do for her teammate, but she still tried to look for something she could use to get Numbuh 3 out of there. She never got that far. The claw started to bring the Japanese back down the hall from where they had come from.

Numbuh 4 had followed the two big wires that belonged to the metal claws. He suddenly noticed that one of them was going the other way now. Startled, he jumped back when he saw the claw coming back towards him. Then he noticed that Numbuh 3 was stuck in it.

Numbuh 3 banged her fists against the hard material of the claw. "No! Let me go!" she screamed.

"Numbuh 3!" Numbuh 4 shouted. He then noticed the other claw coming back at him as well, this one carrying Numbuh 5. "Crud!" he exclaimed and jumped out of the way as both claws passed him.

"Numbuh 4 – get the heck outta here!" Numbuh 5 screamed. She tried to get out of the claw's grip, but in vain.

The claws with the two girls reached their destination. The Delightful Children stared at them through the glass.

"You actually thought you could run from us, Kids Next Door?" the five voices asked in unison. "There is no escape for you this time. See the lenses in the front of the claws? Those are little cameras. We can see where we're going, steering one claw each. Fascinating, isn't it?"

Into the kitchen was suddenly Numbuh 2 brought by one claw. After him followed Numbuh 1 in another one. A third one was came back from the long hall, carrying Numbuh 4, who obviously hadn't run away and got caught by the last claw.

"You're coming with us now, Kids Next Doom!" the Delightfuls said. "We will have our revenge upon you, and there's nothing you can do to stop us!" They threw their heads back and laughed monotonously.

Numbuhs 1 through 5 looked at each other. Numbuh 1 tried to get loose, kicking his feet. Numbuh 2 tried to look for a weak spot on his claw. Numbuh 3 squirmed. Numbuh 4 kicked his feet and waved his fists frantically. Numbuh 5 tried to pull herself out. No one succeeded in trying to get out.

The Delightful Children opened the platform door in the back of the ship and steered the claws into it. They dumped the KND operatives on the hard floor, then brought their claws back and shut the platform door again.

"What are they going to do to us?" Numbuh 2 asked, his voice trembling a little. He stood up. As did the rest of them.

"I'm not quite sure," Numbuh 1 muttered thoughtfully. "They've already tried to squeeze information out of us. They don't really need us for anything."

"Don't you guys get it?" Numbuh 5 exclaimed. "They're going to kill us!"

"No!" Numbuh 3 whimpered. "Don't say that, Numbuh 5! Maybe they're just inviting us over for tea or something?"

"It's so obvious, Numbuh 3!" Numbuh 5 said angrily. "They've planned this, and this was the last time we saw the sun! We are as good as dead!"

"It's not true!" Numbuh 3 cried, pressing her hands against her ears. "I'm not listening!"

"Calm down, guys!" Numbuh 1 called. "Nobody's killing the Kids Next Door! We'll fight to the end! As a matter of fact, there won't be an end for us! Not today, not by them!"

Numbuh 3 had sat down on the floor, covering her face with her green sleeve-covered hands. Numbuh 4 sat down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders to comfort her.

The ship suddenly started to move. The shaking made the three remained standing operatives fall to the floor with startled shouts. Numbuh 3 and Numbuh 4 almost fell on their backs even if they were seated. The ship flew off with the KND operatives trapped in the big space in the back.

It got quiet in there. No one felt like talking. Numbuh 1 was thinking hard. Numbuh 2 had sat down, his head bent down resignedly. Numbuh 3 was sitting in a corner, hugging her knees with tears in her eyes. Numbuh 4 was walking around in there, trying to find a way out. Numbuh 5 was standing, leaned against a wall, her eyes concealed by her hat. There wasn't anything for them to do.

Numbuh 4 soon realized there was no escape. He kicked the nearest wall and let out a scream of fury. "What the crud are ya gonna do, huh?" he screamed, referring to the Delightfuls. Though he knew they probably couldn't hear him. "Cruddy chickens! Why don't you fight like men, huh? Are you afraid to face the Kids Next Door? Come on, you freaks!"

"Stop it, Numbuh 4," Numbuh 2 muttered. "You're just wearing yourself out."

"Crud!" Numbuh 4 screamed one last time and stamped his foot angrily. Then he took a deep breath and walked over to Numbuh 3. He sat down next to her and crossed his legs and arms irritated.

"They have to open that platform door one time or another," Numbuh 1 muttered thoughtfully and pointed at it. "And when they do, we'll be prepared. We'll jump out and attack them. That's all we can do."

"Yeah, we'll beat them up like there's no tomorrow!" Numbuh 4 muttered angrily.

Silence fell between them as the ship flew further and further away from the Treehouse. It was hopeless now anyway. And they knew that. They knew they couldn't do anything as long as they were trapped in there. It made them frustrated and angry. They were defenseless and weaponless.

We should have left the Treehouse while we had the chance, Numbuh 1 thought to himself, starting to beat himself up for not doing anything in order to protect his team. He thought they were able to take the Delightful Children down if they so figured out that they wanted to attack the Treehouse. He now knew he had been wrong. They had won this time, and Sector V was captured. Numbuh 1 shook his head resigned.

After a long time, a TV screen was lowered down in the middle of the big room. It was turned on and the five faces of their archenemies showed up on it. "Hello, back there!" they said in unison. "Had a nice flight?"

"What the crud do you think, you stupid freaks of nature?" Numbuh 4 shouted in anger.

They ignored him. "Unless you've already figured it out, this is where we get rid of you," they said. "This is where we won't have to deal with you ever again! We're dropping you down now, if you won't mind. Have a nice life, for as long as it will last!" Then they laughed before the screen went black and disappeared into the ceiling.

"What did they mean by that?" Numbuh 3 asked and looked at the leader with curious eyes.

"They're going to detach this thing from the cockpit!" Numbuh 1 called out. "Numbuh 2, see if there's anything you can do to open that platform!"

"Roger that," Numbuh 2 replied and ran over to the door. He looked for a fuse box of some kind, anything that would open that platform. There was a small lid there. He tried to open it. "Darn it! I need to get this thing open!"

"Move out of the way!" Numbuh 4 called out and ran over to him. With all his strength, the Australian banged his fist on the lid. He backed away, covering his knuckles with the other hand and growled in pain.

The lid was very bent now, enough for Numbuh 2 to get his fingers through a small crack and pull it open. Many thin wires came into view.

A loud sound was heard as the cockpit was detached from the rest of the ship. The back of it started to fall down from the sky.

"Hurry, Numbuh 2!" Numbuh 1 screamed.

Numbuh 2 was fumbling with the wires, trying to figure out which to go with which in order to get the door open. As the back of the ship as falling, he started to lose his balance.

A loud bang was heard as the abandoned part of the ship hit a cliff, causing the five kids in there to be thrown and hitting the back wall. The platform door opened as Numbuh 2 had managed to get the right wires hooked together just before they had hit the cliff. The ship was now heavier on the side with the platform, so it tilted that way. The five operatives cried out as they started to fall towards the now open door. They tried to hold on to something, but there weren't anything to grab on to.

As they reached the opening, Numbuh 5 did an attempt on grabbing a hold on the slender wall next to it. But she failed and hit her shoulder on it instead. She screamed in pain and fell out of the ship with the rest of her team.

The five of them all grabbed a hold of the edge of the platform just before they fell to their doom. They cried out and squirmed, trying to get up on the platform. Numbuh 5 was all the way to the right side of the platform. Next to her was Numbuh 1. Numbuh 3 was in between him and Numbuh 4, and at the very left side was Numbuh 2.

Numbuh 5 was in a lot of pain, leaning most her weight on her good arm. "Get us outta here!"

They screamed even more when the ship threatened to slide off the cliff.

"Don't more!" Numbuh 1 ordered.

Numbuh 2 made a frightened sound. "And don't look down either!"

"What?" Numbuh 4 looked down. Below them was water and some sharp cliffs. He screamed again and kicked his feet. "No! No! I don't wanna drown!"

The ship moved slightly again.

"Stop moving around!" Numbuh 1 shouted. "We're all gonna die if you won't stop moving! So stop it!"

"I don't wanna die!" Numbuh 3 cried, tears filling her eyes.

"I wanna go home!" Numbuh 4 shrieked. He sobbed loudly.

The pain was slowly taking over Numbuh 5's upper body. She knew she couldn't hold on much longer. Her shoulder hurt too much, and it was only getting worse. Her fingers were slipping off the edge. And she started to fall.

Numbuh 1 reacted quickly and reached his left arm out to grab her.

"Numbuh 1!" she cried.

"Hold on, Numbuh 5!" he told her as he tightened his grip around her arm. He looked to the others. "I need one of you to climb up, and then help the rest!"

"It's impossible!" Numbuh 2 shouted frantically. "Don't you think we've been trying?"

"I'm too scared!" Numbuh 3 sobbed.

"Numbuh 4, you're good at climbing," Numbuh 1 said and looked at the blond with hope.

"No! No, I'm too freaked out!" Numbuh 4 replied. "I can't!"

"You have to!" Numbuh 1 ordered. "I have an idea. Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 3 have to bend their knees and hold their legs up so you can step on them. You can't get up without anything to stand on. Come on, guys. You can do it."

"What if I fall down?" Numbuh 4 asked and glanced down at the water again. "I don't wanna drown, and I can't swim."

"The fall alone will kill you, you idiot!" Numbuh 5 snapped. "Now, get climbing!"

Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 3 stretched their legs out towards Numbuh 4. He carefully placed one foot on Numbuh 2's knee.

The ship slipped a little, making the whole platform shake.

Numbuh 2 had to let his leg down again, which caused Numbuh 4 to fall back with a cry of fear. He clenched his hands onto the edge and kicked his feet a little to regain balance. He couldn't help but cry out once more before the ship stopped moving. A horrible image of him falling down popped up in his mind.

"Don't worry, Numbuh 4," Numbuh 1 said with a calm voice. "Just try again."

"No!" Numbuh 4 cried, squeezing his eyes shut. "I can't do it! I can't! It's impossible!"

"Are we just gonna hang here, then?" Numbuh 2 asked, his voice trembling.

"Stop pushing me!" Numbuh 4 screamed and got up in the pilot's face. "I can't do it if you're pushing me!"

"We have to push you!" Numbuh 1 said irritated. "Try again. You'll make it, don't worry."

Numbuh 4 swallowed down hard and tried again. He stepped on Numbuh 2's knee, then he stepped carefully on Numbuh 3's knee. His legs were shaking. As he got a little above the edge, he tried to find something to grab onto, but there was only the bumpy surface of the platform to place his hands on. His hand lost the grip on the platform and he nearly slid off. He cried out, and the whole ship moved again. It was worse this time, and they all cried out in fear.

When the ship regained balance, Numbuh 4 was back where he had started.

"I can't do this crud!" he cried.

"Are you just gonna leave us here to die, then?" Numbuh 5 screamed at him. "Numbuh 5 can't hold on much longer, and neither can Numbuh 1! So climb, you retarded piece of crap!"

"Would you shut the crud up?" Numbuh 4 whined. "I can't do it if you're yelling at me, and neither do I want to do it when you're doing that!"

"Fine, so you're just gonna kill us all?" Numbuh 5 yelled. "Do you want us all to die? Do you want Numbuh 3 to die? And you just told her how much she means to you! Do you really want to lose it all?"

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!" Tears were gathering in Numbuh 4's eyes. He sobbed.

"Please, Wally," Numbuh 3 pleaded, her eyes all teary.

He looked at her with concern.

"Please climb up…" she continued. "Do it for me."

Numbuh 4 sighed and got a grip. Then he carefully stepped on both Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 3's knees again. He threw his arms up on the platform and pulled himself completely up with a little push in the butt from Numbuh 2.

"Hey, no touching the butt!" Numbuh 4 snapped as he crawled over the platform and got up on his feet.

Numbuh 2 giggled. "Third time's the charm! And I was just helping you, by the way."

"Yay, Wally!" Numbuh 3 cheered.

"Way to go, Numbuh 4!" Numbuh 1 complimented. "Now start pulling us up."

Numbuh 4 thought about it briefly and came to the conclusion that it was smartest to get Numbuh 3 up first. She was skinny and easy to carry. Together they could get Numbuh 2 up. The three of them all needed to help Numbuh 1 and Numbuh 5. That was impossible for him to do alone. So he got on his knees on the edge and grabbed onto Numbuh 3's arms.

Numbuh 3 squirmed a little, but she managed to get a grip around Numbuh 4's arms.

"Whatever you do, don't let go," Numbuh 4 said. He then used all the strength he had in his body to pull Numbuh 3 up quickly. He fell on his back on the platform and she landed on top of him.

"Yay, we did it!" Numbuh 3 cheered and hugged the blond boy.

"C'mon, we have to get Numbuh 2 next," he said, trying to hide his blushed cheeks.

They got up and over to the edge. Then they grabbed one of Numbuh 2's arms each and pulled as hard as they could.

"Ouch!" Numbuh 2 cried out and kicked his feet. "It hurts!"

But the two others ignored him. If he wanted to keep living, he'd have to deal with a little pain! So they kept pulling him until he was up. He fell to his stomach on the platform.

"Hurry up, we have to get the others!" Numbuh 3 said and walked over to the right side.

Numbuh 4 followed the Japanese. He sat down his knees and leaned over the edge. Numbuh 3 grabbed onto his legs, and Numbuh 2 grabbed onto hers again. Then Numbuh 4 was lowered down. He stretched his arms out to get Numbuh 5. When he finally had put his arms around her, ready to get pulled up again, the whole ship moved. It got closer to falling off the cliff each time it moved. All of them cried out. Numbuh 5 threw her arms around Numbuh 1 again, and Numbuh 4 did the same. Numbuh 1's hands were aching as he had to tighten his grip on the edge. Numbuh 3 let one of Numbuh 4's legs go and grabbed onto the edge, scared to fall down. Numbuh 2 did the same and tried to tug the skinny girl up again with one arm.

When the ship once again stopped moving, Numbuh 2 grabbed onto Numbuh 3's other leg again.

"Get us the heck up!" Numbuh 5 shouted.

Numbuh 4 got his arms around her again. Then Numbuh 3 started to pull them up. Numbuh 2 helped her, and finally they got Numbuh 5 up. She groaned at the pain in her shoulder.

"Let me take a look at that," Numbuh 3 said and brought Numbuh 5 further up on the platform.

The two boys reached out for Numbuh 1 this time and pulled him up.

Numbuh 1 rubbed his arms. "I thought they were going to break off!" he muttered. Then he looked at his fellow male operatives with a grateful smile. "Thanks, guys." He looked over at the two girls. "How's your shoulder, Numbuh 5?"

"She's hit it hard," Numbuh 3 replied for her as she examined it. "But she'll be fine as long as she won't use it a lot. She needs to let it rest."

"See, Numbuh 5's cool," Numbuh 5 said and smiled. "She can take anything."

"Now the only question is; how the heck are we gonna get outta here?" Numbuh 2 asked.

A little later, in Father's mansion:

"We've done as you told us, Father," five monotone voices said in unison. "Numbuhs 1 through 5 of the Kids Next Door are now completely out of our lives."

"Excellent, my children," Father's dark voice replied from the other side of the room. His eyes burned with enthusiasm, his body blending in with shadows around him. "Everything is going according to plan!"

Cree was standing outside the door to his lounge and listening to the conversation. She was thrilled to know that those five little KND brats were gone forever. She suddenly jumped as she heard a familiar voice behind her:

"Surprise, Cree!"

She turned around and found herself standing face to face with Chad. "Whoa! Don't you ever sneak up on me like tha- Oh my God, you're a teenager again..!" This was the first time she'd seen him after he got turned back to a teenager. She hadn't realized that he was himself at first, and she didn't know the age-changing device was fixed again.

"Yes, I am!" he said proudly and grinned at her. "Have you missed me?"

"Ugh… Not really," she sneered. "I liked you better as a baby."

Chad frowned. Was she lying?

"Well, I've got good news for you, Chad," Cree said. "My baby sister and her pathetic friends are finally gone!"

"That was about time!" he replied and smiled evilly. He then looked at her with a sly face. "So, how about a date to celebrate it?"

Cree groaned resignedly and walked away.