Well here I am again. Thanks again for the reveiws, I hope you like the next chapter everyone!

Chapter 2: The Dead of Night

The trip home was a quiet one. The gray clouds had disappeared revealing a black, starless night sky and the merciless rain had stopped long ago, leaving behind a wet, muggy gloominess in the air. The horrific events from earlier also hung heavily in the warm night air as the girls made their way home.

I don't get it...We were just talking to him.. I thought he was safe.. I guess.. I guess we've failed Townsville once again... Blossom thought sadly and helplessly to herself.

I'm so confused.. I still can't believe it..... ....What about before..? We all saw him... they have to be wrong.. He couldn't have died before then.. I saw him with my own eyes! What if... What if he was a g-ghost? Or a ...a zombie!! Bubbles thought to herself with a squeal and a jump.

How? How could a villain be so powerful that he could steal so much, so quickly ...not to mention kill without even the slightest clue... Buttercup thought angrily.

Soon the girls found themselves lying in bed, both exhausted from the whole ordeal and yet also plagued by insomnia and the endless unanswered questions that riddled and oppressed their clouded minds.

In a dark alley on the east side of town, a tall hooded figure stood hidden beneath the shadows in the dead of night. Seemingly by magic, the mysterious character slowly pulled out a large bag from his cloak. He let out a soft ethereal chuckle as he reached in the bag while sinking deeper into the shadows. The only hint of light that could be seen was the twinkle of the diamonds as the strange dark form inspected them slowly with his long boney fingers.

"Excellent... everything went just as I'd planned," He said in a ghostly voice that seemed to echo softly from every direction. "I had no idea my power was so incredible. I'm capable of so much... think of the possibilities! This is everything I could have ever dreamed of and even more.. I simply can't wait until I can test it to its full extent. I just need a better test dummy.." he said with a smirk.

"I bet those Powerpuff Girls would do nicely...Heh. I can't wait to see those three cocky little brats begging for mercy." He began laughing to himself in a maniacal, venomous voice that would send chills up the spine of the bravest of men.

"Soon enough I'll have this town of fools, and, most importantly, those Powerpuff Girls wrapped around my little finger."

As these words were spoken they seemed to echo in the darkened alley. They soon faded into silence along with the bizarre miscreant, who also quickly vanished into the black void of the alley.

Blossom found herself running down the wet streets of east Townsville. She didn't know what was going on, only that she had some unknown destination and she was driven by some strange force in her head to get there. She looked up to see that she was chasing a shadowy hooded figure. She didn't know why, but the sight of this unknown person made her so furious that she ran as fast as she could, not caring how much it hurt or how tired she was.

"Hey stop! Get back here!" Blossom shouted, and was surprised at the unexpected deepness of her voice. She looked down at herself to find that she was not herself at all, but instead Mr. Cole.

In a flash, the shadow turned and darted down a nearby alley as the rain began to pour even more mercilessly. Blossom quickly followed him only to discover the alley to be empty. She looked around anxiously for him, but he was nowhere to be found.

She immediately sensed another presence nearby and took a couple of steps backward, darting her head nervously from one side to the other, searching furiously for the culprit. As she felt a tap in her shoulder, she whirled around to see a tall, ghost-like silhouette, barely outlined by the dim streetlights and very hard to see through the heavy rain. She looked up and saw a pair of horrifying red eyes boring into her own, and she could feel chills going up and down her spine at the mere sight of them.

She had stood there aghast for only a second when the tall ghostly man slowly held up a hand of inhumanly long fingers, curled them into a fist, and in one quick blow....

Blossom shrieked as she sat up in bed with a jerk, panting and sweating. Her heart was beating so quickly that it took a few moments for her to calm down. She looked over to her sisters and saw they she hadn't woken them up. Good. She didn't want to cause any more problems than she already had.

She sighed heavily and began to think quickly about the nightmare she'd just had. Why was she Mr. Cole? And who was she chasing? As she thought about this, she slowly realized that this mysterious character must be the one who robbed the jewelry store. It almost seemed like she had seen what happened through Mr. Cole's eyes. Was it a random nightmare? Or a sign sent from Mr. Cole himself?

"Bah.. Nonsense." She thought to herself with a chuckle. Quickly dismissing it as just an after effect of the shock, she curled up in bed under the warm covers and tried to fall asleep.

Blossom awoke the next day with a painful headache. She groaned as she sat up in bed and looked at the clock. Seven o'clock. Hard to believe that only twelve hours ago this whole thing had started. She noticed her sisters were already gone so she floated downstairs and joined them at the breakfast table where the Professor was hovering about and humming a tune, trying desperately to brighten this dreary morning.

Each girl was in the same dismal mood; both a mixture of unrestful, anxious sleep and the sickening feeling that something was very, very wrong. An array of emotions buzzed around in their minds; guilt, sadness, confusion, exhaustion and most importantly, fear. This new villain had cut them deeper than any physical wound. He had made one of their biggest fears a reality, which was letting the city of Townsville down and an innocent citizen get hurt. Professor Utonium was hopelessly trying to cheer up his gloomy girls by offering them their favorite breakfasts: bacon and eggs, waffles, pancakes, even Lucky Captain Rabbit King Nuggets!.. but it was all in vain. He frowned as he sat at the table with them and watched them pick at their food. It broke his heart to see them in such pain over the whole thing, so he attempted to cheer them up.

"Girls.. I know you're still upset about what happened yesterday," he said with a sigh. "But its not your fault.. There's no way anyone could've known this would happen. Please don't blame yourself."

He looked at them with sad but serious eyes. "It's probably just some big mistake on somebody's part.. There's so many possible explanations for how this could've happened... just please ..please don't beat yourselves up over it."

There was a moment of silence as each girl sat in quiet understanding. Professor got up and gave each girl a hug and a kiss before heading down to the lab to work.

"I love you girls. I hope you have a good day at school," he said with a smile.

Soon after he was out of sight, they began to slowly eat their breakfasts. In no time at all, the stresses of the night before had been almost completely forgotten as they slowly fell back into their regular Monday routine. In a flash, the girls were off to school; their trademark smiles once again gracing their little faces.

It was a beautiful, sunny day in Townsville. The only trace of the storm the night before was a few scattered puddles and a sweet smell in the air. The blue sky, the golden sunshine and the chirping birds in the trees could lift any burden and warm any heart.

The Pokey Oaks kindergarten class was going out to recess at about noon on this beautiful day. Blossom sat on the warm grass and read her book, while Buttercup played dodge ball with Mitch, and Bubbles played jump-rope with Robin. Blossom took a deep breath and was enjoying the sweet smelling air when she noticed something outside the metal fence of the playground.

A strange man was staring at her, an empty look in his eyes. She thought he looked strikingly familiar, with his wrinkled face, balding white hair, grey shirt, and brown pants. He just stood there for a moment glaring at her, his face pale and his eyes almost colorless.

She blinked and suddenly he had vanished. In his place, a tall man with dark hair was standing at a bus stop looking at her, a confused look on his face. She blushed and quickly looked back at her book.

"That man almost looked like Mr. Cole." She thought to herself. "But that's impossible..." She thought as she read the same sentence over and over.

"What if.. What if that was a ghost?" Blossom's eyes went wide as she thought about this. "Nah.. I'm just seeing things. Stop being silly, there's no such thing."

She turned the page of her book slowly and looked down with sad eyes.

"I guess I still feel guilty about that..."She said, a somber look crossing her features at the memory. She sighed and thought to herself more about the situation. It all seemed so confusing, she didn't know what to think anymore.

She was shaken out of her deep thoughts when the hotline phone rang. Blossom put down her book and flew to answer it.

"Hello?.... yes Mayor? Another robbery!?.. First National Bank? ..We'll be right there!"

Blossom quickly called the girls into action, and soon enough they were on their way to save the day once again.

Thanks for reading! Your feedback is greatly appreciated.