Allies and Rivals III
This fic happens after Allies and Rivals II: Commander and the Leader. But reading that fic and my other fics is not necessary for understanding or enjoying this fic. There are references to my other fics, notablyAllies and Rivalsand Allies and Rivals II. However, the only thing that needs to be understood in this was that a certain Dr William Edwards was the one who recreated the Rowdyruff Boys, not Him, after they were first destroyed by the girls by being kissed, and under his guidance, they were not evil anymore. And they were in alliance with the girls, called the Ruff Puff Alliance, with Blossom and Brick alternating as leader.
Summary:The Powerpuff Girls and Rowdyruff Boys race against time to prevent an evil from escaping to this world. Who are your true friends, allies, and enemies?
Disclaimer:I don't own the Powerpuff Girls or their characters. The Powerpuff Girls are owned by Craig McCracken and Cartoon Network. I only own my own characters, the most prominent of which is Dr Edwards.
Chapter XVI
Revenge of the Rowdyruff Boys
A. Repudiation of the Wish
The City of Townsville, in Dr. Edwards' dream world…
A deep voice suddenly boomed all around after Dr. Edwards called the Voice. "I am the Voice," it said, "and you have summoned me, William Edwards. What do you want?"
The Voice frightened the girls and the adult ruffs. They looked around to see for any signs of the Voice, but aside from the occasional passerby, there was no sign of any evil being that could be positively identified as the Voice.
The Voice's voice was everywhere, as if they were standing in the room with speakers on every nook and cranny. It was everywhere. It came from no specific direction and there was no specific vibration. They could only hear the clear, deep, and sinister voice of the Voice.
"Whoa! So this is why they call it the Voice. You can only hear him!" said Buttercup.
"It's just a freakin' voice!" said "Butch."
"Voice, show yourself!" Blossom, gritting her teeth, shouted.
But the Voice ignored the Powerpuff Girls. "Why did you call me?"
"Voice, I know the truth!" said Dr. Edwards. "I am imprisoned in my own mind so you can control my body and command my sons, and the same is true for the Professor!"
"Ah, so you learned the truth," said the Voice. "Is that all? What is it that you summoned me for?"
"I want to renege on my wish!" shouted Dr. Edwards.
"Are you sure? You seemed to have a pretty happy life in your own dream. Why return to the real world when you are perfectly happy here?" the Voice replied.
"Look, I was perfectly happy then!" Dr. Edwards replied. "As much as I was here until I found out the truth. Besides, my sons in the real world need me."
"Then they will become evil!" said the Voice. "As I showed you in the vision."
"They, in the real world are already becoming evil! You lied to him, Voice," Blossom shouted. "You said that you would grant him his wish of making sure his sons would not turn evil, but…but in fact, you made them evil by using their loyalty to him to do evil deeds for you!"
The Voice ignored Blossom, however, preferring to concentrate on Dr. Edwards. "What say you, Doctor? If you renege on this wish, then your adult sons, your world in your dream, would disappear! You've been very very happy with the world I gave you. Are you willing to lose it? Are you willing to lose the adult ruffs that came with this world, whom you know are good and loyal sons? If you want, I can erase your memory so that you wouldn't even know that this isn't real."
Dr. Edwards suddenly stopped, and looked at his three adult sons. He cringed. "My sons—"
"Dad, it's all right. We know that we're not real. But we won't disappear. We're the same boys who you would see when you wake up from this nightmare. Perhaps, twenty years in the future, you would see them the same way you saw us—happy, powerful, successful, and good," said "Brick."
"Boomer's" eyes teared-up. "You know I don't want this to end like this. Oh how I wish this is the real world, but it's not. Don't worry Dad. I am willing to lose my existence because, because, I know I don't really exist. Dad—make our sacrifice worthwhile by making your real sons in the real world just like us—your dream then would come true in the real world. Then, twenty years from now, when you see your sons as successful as we are in this world, when you know that that success is by your own hard work and that of your real sons. When you know that nobody could rightly claim that it was just a dream, you can say—you can say, that you can be really proud."
Butch stepped forward, also in tears. "Dad, dad! No matter what happens, we will always be loyal and obedient to you. I know, I know it would be hard for you to see us just disappear just like that, but remember, this world is not real. We're just figments of your imagination! We don't exist! Your real sons are waiting in the real world! Don't disappoint them!"
Dr. Edwards then hugged his three sons as he too, cried. "I thought, I thought, that you would oppose it. I was afraid I would have to do away with you, and I still am. I hate what I am going to do, but I will still do it knowing that it is the right thing to do. Saying that you are willing to sacrifice yourselves and your world certainly lifts a huge burden off my shoulders, though the pangs of conscience would not ease. Oh I wish I could keep both versions of my sons. But in this case, I can't, so I must choose. I know, I know, you don't really exist, this is only a dream, but it still hurts. Well, forgive me for making that foolish wish!"
"There's no need for that, Dad," said "Brick." "We know you only meant good."
"But isn't the road to hell paved with good intentions?" Dr. Edwards replied. "What fool I have been for doubting my children in the real world! What fool I have been for thinking that only a wish to someone who I don't know and who might be evil would be the only thing that could prevent my sons from being evil! What a fool I have been for relying on a wish to ensure your future! What kind of father I am that doubts his ability to raise his children properly? What fool I am for creating you in the first place, or rather recreating you, if I don't have the confidence to raise you in my image? What fool I have been for doubting my ability to raise you properly just because of some old silly dream! I am very sorry, my sons! What I did is just create a dream world to engage in my fantasy while the Voice can exploit your loyalty to me in the real world."
"That's not your intention," said "Brick."
"I know. But that still doesn't mean I can't feel guilty about it. Well, I'll miss you—I mean the adult versions of you—I'll miss you. I promise that I'll do my best in raising my kids."
"It's okay Dad," said "Boomer." "We understand."
"Are you going to renege on your wish or are you going to waste my time crying?" the Voice shouted.
"Hold your horses, Voice!" said Dr. Edwards. "I'm going to get to you. Just wait, okay?" Turning to his sons, he continued. "Well, goodbye, Brick, Boomer, Butch."
"Goodbye, Dad," said "Brick."
"Good luck, Dad," said "Boomer."
"Bye, Father," said "Butch."
The Powerpuff Girls just stood there, watching the scene. Bubbles herself shed some tears.
"Okay, Voice, I renege on my wish!" shouted Dr. Edwards.
"Okay, if that is what you want!" said the Voice.
Suddenly, there was a bright light, and all parties concerned were forced to close their eyes.
"Blossom, did you accidentally use the sunball?" Buttercup charged.
"No," Blossom simply replied.
One minute later, they were finally able to open their eyes.
The world of Dr. Edwards' dream was gone. The house behind them was gone. The forest before them was gone too. The sky was gone and, even the dark clouds were gone. The three adult ruffs were gone. The only ones who remained was Dr. Edwards himself, and the Powerpuff Girls. Dr. Edwards' face was not of an old man in his sixties, but a young man twenty years older, with the same age and face as the Dr. Edwards in the real world. All around them was pitch black, though strangely, they can see each other perfectly.
"It's gone. All of it," said Blossom.
"Yeah. Don't be sad Doctor, you'll soon wake up and see your real sons," said Bubbles.
"And the ones who disappeared are not real," said Buttercup. "You did the right thing."
"Well, guess I better wake up, huh," said Dr. Edwards.
"Who says anything about waking up," the Voice suddenly shouted.
"Where are you, Voice?" Blossom shouted.
"Yeah! Show yourself and fight like a man!" Buttercup added, looking around for any sign of the Voice.
"Yeah, you coward and bully," Bubbles shouted.
"Ah, so you three aren't part of his dream? Oh well, it doesn't matter," said the Voice. "I just want to tell you that Dr. Edwards is still stuck on his own mind, and I would still control his body!"
"Huh? What are you saying?" Dr. Edwards, confused, asked. "I reneged on my wish, and you acquiesced!"
"Yes, but I said nothing about releasing you from your dream, and returning your body to you! I still control it, and I have no intention of relinquishing it! Muahahahahahahahahahahahahah a!"
"You evil voice thing you!" Bubbles shouted.
"Where are you? Come here! I'm going to give you a real beating! Come on! I dare you to show your face!" Buttercup angrily shouted.
But the Voice didn't reply, and the girls soon found themselves making threats at an empty space.
"It's no use," said Dr. Edwards. "We can't do anything."
"Well, I'm not giving up," said Blossom. "There has got to be a way of freeing you."
"Well, whatever it is, you better figure it out," said Buttercup.
"Don't worry, Doctor," said Bubbles. "It's not hopeless. We'll find a way."
"Well, I hope you're right," said Dr. Edwards. "Or else I'm stuck in my own mind forever, and without a fake world to boot."
B. The Old Man
"Did you hear that, Blossom?" Buttercup said as she heard something.
Blossom was too deep in thought to notice Buttercup. "What's that Buttercup?"
"Did you hear that? Sounds like footsteps," she commented.
Blossom strained her ears to listen. "No, I don't hear anything. Are you sure that—wait! I hear it! It is footsteps!"
Bubbles also heard the footsteps. "It's over there," she pointed over to their left.
Dr. Edwards looked towards the supposed source of the sound.
At first, all the four could see, in that direction, was utter blackness. However, the footsteps became louder and louder.
The kids and the adult looked into the direction, straining their eyes for any sign of the source of the footsteps, till finally, they saw a faint outline of a man. They can see that he wearing a pointed cap, kinda like a dunce cap, and long flowing purple robes. Then, his outline became clearer as he approached. Finally, they finally saw him clearly.
He was an old emaciated man. He has a full flowing white beard that reached to his waist. He was wearing ridiculously thick glasses. His face was full of wrinkles, and he was stooped. He had a cane that he used to assist him in his walk.
"So you're the Voice!" shouted Buttercup. She then went and charged and began beating up the old man. Both her sisters joined her.
The old man, however, didn't seem to be fazed at all. He simply waved his hand and the three girls found themselves floating in the air, unable to attack him.
"Hold it! I ain't the Voice," the old man said in an extremely high-pitched voice. "Kids these days! Don't have any respect for their elders. You go out there and try to help them, and what do they do? They attack you!"
"Wait a minute!" said Blossom.
"You're not the Voice?" Buttercup added.
"You're here to help us?" Bubbles finished.
"Help you? You'd think I'd help you after the beating you gave to me?" the old man snapped.
"Well, will you?" asked Buttercup.
"Well, no, but I do know how that young fellow over there can regain control," said the old man, "but you youngins are more interested in beating up a poor old man like me!" he squeaked, shaking his cane at the girls.
"Look, we're very sorry about it," said Blossom. "We thought you were the Voice."
"Hey! How do you know you aren't the Voice?" Buttercup charged.
"You don't. I can only give you my word. If you don't believe me, then the young man here would be forever stuck here," said the old man. He then turned to leave. "It's clear that I'm not wanted here. When I was young, we respected our elders! Oh how times have changed."
"Wait!" Blossom said, "We believe you. Will you help us? Or at least tell us how to free Dr. Edwards?"
The old man stopped walking away and turned to the girls "I don't know. Of course, what will you give me in return? I ain't doing it for free you know."
"Well, what do you want? As long as we could reasonably give it to you," said Dr. Edwards, "we would do it."
"Oh my needs aren't that great," said the old man. "I am a lonely old man. I only require that the three girls kiss me on the cheeks and on the lips then snuggle me."
"What? You dirty old man!" said Dr. Edwards angrily.
"Forget it! You're disgusting!" Buttercup said.
"Kiss you? Eewwww!" said Bubbles, gagging at the thought.
"You're old and ugly!" Blossom replied, disgusted like the others. "Even uglier than Brick!"
"Really? Oh well. Guess I'll be going," said the old man. "Hope you enjoy, Dr. Edwards, your eternity stuck in your own mind. Good bye." He started walking away.
"Girls, I think we need to do this," said Blossom, suddenly changing her mind.
"Kiss him? No!" said Bubbles. "His face has full of wrinkles and he's breath stinks!"
"I won't do it!" said Buttercup.
"But we need to! If it's true that he knows the only way to free the doctor from this dream, then we have to do it," said Blossom. "Remember, the first time the Rowdyruffs attacked us, we kissed them to make them explode."
"Yeah, but the boys were kinda cute," said Bubbles. "That old man is—yucky."
"Girls, you don't have to do it," said Dr. Edwards.
"No, we have to," said Blossom. "We have no choice."
"But girls—"
"Doctor, no, we'll do it—for Townsville, for the boys, for you, for the Professor," said Blossom. "Buttercup?"
"Oh I'll do it, but I don't like it!" said Buttercup, shuddering at what she had to do.
"Well, okay, but only because we need to! I don't like it," said Bubbles.
"Hey Mister," Blossom shouted. "Okay, you've got a deal!"
The old man turned around. "You mean it?"
"Yes, we'll kiss you," said Blossom.
"Yipee!" the old man shouted, and jumped up and clicked his heels. "This is gonna be great. Okay, each of you three girls kiss me in each cheek ten times, then twice on the lips, then gently stroke my beard, then gently hug me once."
"What? That's too much!" Buttercup shouted. "No way!"
"Well, then goodbye! You can't even give an old man what he needs! Such gratitude!" said the man, turning to leave.
"Okay, we'll do it! Just promise me you'll help us!" said Blossom.
"Okay!" said the old man. He quickly turned around, and walked back to the four with a sick wide grin on his face.
"I'm ready!" said the old man. "Which of you will go first?"
"I'll do it," said Blossom. She cringed as she approached him. She closed her eyes, and kissed his left cheek ten times, his right cheek ten times, then his lips twice then she stroked his beard and hugged just as he instructed.
Dr. Edwards couldn't help but snicker, but he hid it from the girls.
"Ah, that feels good! Wow! I haven't felt this good since, well!" said the old man.
Blossom spat on the ground after the act as her sisters did the same to persuade the old man to help them release Dr. Edwards from the dream.
"Well, we did it! Now, live up to your bargain and tell us how to free Dr. Edwards!" said Blossom with an angry look towards the old man.
C. Explanations
"And who are you anyway?" Dr. Edwards demanded.
"Ah, thanks for the pleasure," said the old man. "Anyway, my real name is in English, unpronounceable, so you can call me by a name I picked up in the past, Walter. Yes, call me Walter. Now, I am the nemesis of the Voice. I am here because there is a rule that every curse or every spell made in theory can be broken, and I am the one who would provide the victim the information on how to do it."
The girls and Dr. Edwards are now listening to him intently.
"Now, I am a free agent, because it is the victim's choice whether or not he wants the spell to be broken. As it is, I can only—"
Suddenly, he fell asleep in the middle of the conversation.
"What the—old man! Get up," Dr. Edwards said, shaking him.
"Huh?" he said as he closed his eyes. "Oh sorry about this. I'm old, you know. I'm the equivalent of a ninety year old human. Anyway, awww! My back!" He slumped forward. "I can't talk anymore till the rheumatism is removed!""
No one made a move.
"My back! Ow! My Back! Ah that's better," he finally said. "But back to my tale."
Suddenly, he sneezed, and he advertently spit out his saliva-drenched false teeth into Buttercup.
"Eewww!" said Bubbles.
"A eeth! Iv me ack ma eeth!" he shouted, pointing at the teeth. Buttercup dropped the teeth to the ground in disgust, covering it with dirt. Blossom picked it up, and gave it to Walter. To the revulsion of everyone, he put it back on his mouth, and resumed his tale as if nothing had happened.
"Where was I? Oh yes? It was back in '48, when things were different back then. Very different I tell you. I had this coin once, it was a very shiny coin, you know. Not those coins that aren't shiny, it's made up of gold. Of course back in those days, we use gold as money, not nickel like today. Well gold is very shiny, and yellow, but not as yellow as my teeth back when I had it! My teeth before is yellow, and I mean yellow. Yellow as in the color and not as to denote being cowardly. But before, we don't call cowards yellow. No, no, no, we call cowards different back then. According to—"
"Mr. Walter, what are you talking about? What does it have to do with how to free Dr. Edwards from the voice?" Blossom interrupted.
"Oh I did? Well shame on you youngins for being disrespectful!" Walter ranted. "Anyway, I can only help those victims of the Voice who specifically repudiated their wish, and even then, the victim has to persuade me to share with them the secret of breaking free of the Voice."
"But who is the Voice, and why is he doing this? What is his goal?" asked Buttercup.
"Oh yes, the Voice. Well you see, my voice today seemed high, squeaky, and raspy, but before, when I was young, when people still bowed to the wisdom of their elders, not like today's youngins, my voice is deep bass which sends every girl and woman who hears it to swoon."
"Not your voice, Walt damnit! I mean the Voice that imprisoned me in my own mind!" Dr. Edwards impatiently shouted.
"I hear you loud and clear, sonny!" said Walter, who took his cane and whacked him and the Powerpuff Girls with it. It didn't really hurt, but it deeply annoyed the four. "People today! Has got no respect to their elders! Back when I was young, we respected our elders you see? We would—Oh nevermind. Anyway, the Voice before is simply not the Voice. He is the predecessor of the Sandman. He usually controls the dreams of the people who sleep. He was, and is, evil, of course, and he always caused nightmares. Father Time, of course, tolerated this—"
"Wait a minute. Who is this, Father Time?" asked Dr. Edwards.
"You don't know? Ah, youngins today! Not only do they disrespect their elders, they don't even know who he is! Why, back in my days, we all knew who he is, and back in the good ole days, we always respect our elders! That's right! Not like you youngins these days! Oh where was I? Oh yeah, Father Time. You see there is a hierarchy in this world that governs the actions of this planet. You see, Father Time and Mother Nature are in charge jointly of this earth. Mother Nature is in charge of the physical Earth, while Father Time is in charge of time and space. The Voice is one of the lieutenants of Father Time, in charge of dreams. Anyway, the Voice has a mean streak, and soon, found that it can take control of people by means of wishes, kinda like what he did to your father. He did this to a couple of people, but the news of it reached Father Time. In his rage, he imprisoned his body in a bottle, kinda like a genie, and buried it deep beneath the earth. As a precaution, the bottle would disappear for thousands of years before it would reappear again. The Sandman was created to replace the Voice in his job."
"Now I was created and given immortality for the purpose of helping the victims of the Voice. Problem is, I was given immortality without eternal youth, so even though I can't die, I grow older day by day. In helping, however, as I said, the choice is mine, and I can set conditions for my help," said Walter. "I can choose which victim I will or will not help."
"You're immortal? How about the Voice? How powerful is the physical form of the Voice? Can he be killed?" Dr. Edwards asked.
"Before I answer your question, I'd like to continue with my narrative. The bottle, for some reason, reappeared a couple of weeks ago, buried under Townsville. Even though his physical form was trapped in it, his powers can still do harm outside. He can grant wishes and take control of people because he had lost none on his mental powers even while trapped. His desire is to free himself from the bottle to unleash his more powerful physical form. About how powerful he is, I advise you to do all that is possible to prevent the people controlled by the Voice to get their hands on the bottle!"
"So how do we get Dr. Edwards free from the control of the Voice? How could he regain control of his own body?" asked Blossom.
Walter yawned. "I'm tired and sleepy. I'll rest for a little while. Dun' worry. Freeing Dr. Edwards is very very difficult, hard even, but it is possible. I'll tell it to you. In three days. Provided you kiss me again and stroke my beard like before."
"What, you can't—" Blossom protested.
"Oh yes I can demand it! It's my choice whether or not I'd help you. If you want my help, then you'd give me what I want," said Walter. "Anyway, here's something to occupy your mind, Doctor."
Walter snapped his finger, and the house and his world reappeared. "It's the same, difference is, there's no people except you. And your refrigerator automatically refills itself every night," said Walter. "Wait for me in three days, and for a price, I'll tell you how you can get out of here."
At that, Walter walked away, fading out in the process. Meanwhile, the girls themselves disappeared, having woken up in the real world.
D. Cold Showers
That morning, August 17…
Blossom opened her eyes, and saw the clock on the opposite side of the wall. It was seven in the morning. She tried getting up, but remembered that her feet was tied to the bed, that her hands tied behind her, and she was thoroughly gagged. She was hungry, wanted to eat, wanted to get out of bed, but realized that she wasn't going anywhere till the boys go back.
She turned to her side when she heard a soft grunt from her left. It was Buttercup. She was trying to get up and out the bed—at the same time trying to free herself. Bubbles, at her right, was just lying still on her back and on her hands, waiting for the boys to feed them breakfast.
It was a half-hour later when the boys entered the holodeck carrying a large tray of food. The girls noticed that their facial expressions weren't that grim or angry, considering the torture the girls put them through the previous night in their dreams.
The boys untied their feet from the bed, though they kept their feet tied together. They carried them to the table, where they strapped them to the chairs before removing their gags and untying their hands so the girls can eat.
"Boys, listen to us!" said Blossom. "We need to tell you something important!"
"Yeah, we found out who the Voice really is!" said Bubbles.
The boys, who were sitting besides them silently watching them, seemed a bit interested. "Go on, talk," said Brick.
"We're listening," said Boomer.
"Okay, guys, here goes," said Bubbles excitedly. They then told the boys everything that happened in Dr. Edwards' dream. Several times, the boys laughed, especially when the girls told them about having to kiss Walter.
"And your proof for this is? I mean hard proof, not just from your words," asked Brick.
"Look, we don't have any hard proofs!" said Buttercup. "Why don't you believe us?"
"Look, I've read more believable fairy tales on trashy paperback novels than that! Oh please! Make your lies plausible at least!" Brick spat back.
"We're not making this up!" Blossom protested. "Would we have lied just to get you to untie us and let us go?"
"Yes you would!" Brick replied.
"Okay we would!" Bubbles replied. "But this time, we're telling the truth!"
But the faces of the boys indicated that they did not believe the girls.
"Yeah right!" Boomer said.
"Look, we can arrange for Walter to go to your dreams! I mean, if he can go to your dreams, maybe you'll believe us!" Blossom argued.
"Yeah! And what are you going to do to convince him? Kiss his dirty feet and rub his stomach full of sores?" Butch joked and the other boys laughed.
"Okay, since you've finished eating, it's time for your breaks. Boomer, go and unstrap Bubbles from the chair so she can go and have her half-hour break," said Brick. "After Bubbles is in the bathroom, we would tie you, Blossom and Buttercup, while we wait for her. You know, the usual routine."
The girls gave up trying to convince the boys and they decided to talk about other things. Bubbles, as usual, went first to the bathroom.
Suddenly, there was a loud screech from the bathroom. "What's that?"
"Oh, I think I forgot to heat the water in the shower. Poor Bubbles must have screamed at the shock of showering in cold water," said Butch, though his snickering betrayed his guilt.
"What? You deliberately did that! That was cruel!" Blossom charged.
"Oh it's not crueller than what you did to us in our dreams, don't you think? And it isn't so bad. Me and my brothers have swam on ice covered lakes before, and it was fun!" Brick replied. He laughed, along with his brothers.
Thirty minutes later, Bubbles emerged, fully dressed, but was bundled more thickly because she shivered of the cold when she finished the shower. She wore thick white tights, two white petticoats under her ankle-length dress, the dress itself thicker than usual, with long sleeves, and a jacket fully buttoned up to her neck.
"Why are you bundled up like that?" asked Boomer.
"The water is so cold," Bubbles replied. "So cold." Though she really wasn't feeling cold at that point.
Boomer then tied Bubbles the same way she was tied the day before, first by crossing her wrists behind her back and cuffing it twice horizontally and vertically, then wrapping rope around, also horizontally and vertically, about seven times, over the cuffs, before cinching it and knotting it beyond the reach of her fingers. He then wrapped tape around it, and over the rope, then wrapped rope above the tape, then put two more cuffs, then covered it with tape. The same process was repeated for the ankles, though all the cuffs were put in horizontally. He then wrapped rope around her knees, her thighs, her shoulders and her midsection. Another rope around her waist was tied to her wrists. All the ropes were tied tight with absolutely so slack. He then put on her gravity belt, and her goggles, though he didn't bother to gag her.
After that, Blossom was untied. She too made a loud shriek when she went to the shower and cold water hit her.
The boys laughed and laughed at their prank. Buttercup and Bubbles frowned at the boys, but can't do anything about it.
Blossom left the bathroom already fully dressed. She didn't dress differently, unlike Bubbles, though she gave the boys a death glare. She wore a red skirt the hem of which reached just below her knees, and a pink tank-top for her upper body. She also put her bow on top of her head to hold her hair.
Brick then tied Blossom like Boomer tied Bubbles, then untied Buttercup, and she went to her half-hour break on the bathroom. She also shouted when she used cold water for her shower. Other than that, she bit her tongue, and thirty minutes later, went out dressed in jean shorts, and a black T-shirt.
They then tied up Buttercup.
"Now, it's time for the real fun to begin," said Brick.
"What do you mean?" asked Blossom.
"Oh just revenge for, you know, the torment you did to us in our dreams," said Butch. "Now, if you just put your lips together so we can put some duct tape over your little loud mouths."
"Aren't we gonna get some hour break so we can talk with ourselves?" Blossom asked.
"That's only for after lunch, and after dinner, not after breakfast," Brick replied.
"And what if we don't?" Buttercup replied.
"Oh we have ways of making you do it, and it won't be pretty," Butch replied. "So better be cooperative."
"Um, aren't you gonna pack our mouths with socks first?" Bubbles asked.
"Don't give them ideas!" Blossom spat. "I thought you're going to have revenge? Isn't this kind of gag kinda like a reward? Compared to your other gags of course."
"Oh we just want to hear the sounds when you scream," said Butch with a wicked smile. "Packing your mouth and having you totally silent won't be as much fun for us as having to hear loud mmpphhss when you screech!"
"Now do it!" Brick commanded.
The girls reluctantly complied. The boys then put a single strip of tape over their lips.
"Now hop over to the floor, and sit back to back," said Brick.
The girls did as told.
Brick then tied them together. Buttercup's right elbow was tied to Blossom's left elbow. Blossom's right elbow was tied to Bubbles's left elbow. Bubbles' right elbow was tied to Buttercup's left. Boomer took a very long piece of hardetal rope, and wrapped them around the girls.
"Well, have fun!" Butch said as he and his brothers went to the door.
E. Creepy Rodents
"Is he ready?" asked Brick to Boomer.
"Yup! I told Mickey what he needs to do, and he'll do it," said Boomer. He then left and came back five minutes later holding a black rat the size of small cat. It has red eyes and squeaks loudly. "Look, I even put in some red contacts in his eyes to make him even look scarier."
"Are you sure?" asked Butch. "We don't want that rat scurrying into a hole."
"He's ready," said Boomer. "Aren't you, Mickey," he said to the rat. "Now go do your thing."
The girls were waiting for whatever the boys would do, when they saw the rat slowly crawling towards them.
The girls were, for some reason, deathly scared of rats, like Buttercup was of spiders before.
They screamed as their hair stood on end as the rat approached. They fidgeted, struggled, and screamed more as they tried to get away from the rat. They were shaking their heads and kicking and trying to inch way from the rat hysterically, but the only thing that they succeeded in doing was making the boys, who were watching the whole time, double over in laughter.
The rat reached Blossom's feet, whose screams were very loud despite the tape over her lips. It reached hysterical heights. She even panicked even more as it crawled on to her bare legs, until the knee, then continued crawling under her knee-length skirt on her thighs, after which he came out. All the time she was trying to kick the rat off her, but it was to no avail. Mickey the rat then crawled up her body, and walked over her bare neck, shoulders, over her face, and on her hair. All this time, Blossom nearly lost her breath screaming, thought the tape didn't budge from her lips. But it was very loud without the packing inside her mouth. She tried to use her laser eyes, but it was to no avail because she and her sisters have goggles strapped on their heads.
The rat then went to Bubbles. Bubbles was luckier, as her dress reached to her ankles, but the rat went under the dress nevertheless and crawled up her legs to her thighs. Luckily, she was wearing thick tights and a two petticoats so it wasn't as bad as it could be. Mickey then went out. It then crawled over the dress, and into her head, where it circled before crawling on her face down to her chest. The rat then went to Buttercup. Buttercup cursed herself for wearing shorts that day. Like her sisters, her hair stood on end as she screamed when she felt the cold feet of the rat crawl on her legs on her body, and her face. Like her sisters, she trashed wildly to either get herself off the ropes, or at least shake the rat off. It did neither. It only resulted in their exhaustion, as each movement of each puff affected the movement of the other puffs.
After the rat was finished scaring the daylights out of Buttercup, it simply went away.
The boys entered the room laughing their heads off. In fact, they were laughing so hard that they were lying on the floor, laughing. Boomer was clutching his stomach, obviously in pain after laughing so hard. Brick was banging his fists on the floor as he laughed, while Butch's eyes were tearing up due to laughter. The girls were very red with embarrassment, but they simply glared at the boys for their prank.
"Ha, ha, ha! Look, the mighty Powerpuff girls! The most powerful girls in the world. Afraid of a lowly rat! Hahaha!" Butch shouted in between bursts of laughter.
"Did you see them squeal and thrash? It's as if that rat was some kind of omnipotent monster!" said Brick, laughing. "And those muffled screams were priceless! It would have been better without the tape, but we can't have them freezing the rat with their icebreathe and killing it with the sonic scream, not can we? But those panicky sounds is almost as good!"
"Ha, ha, ha! This is so funny! This prank is so funny! Those girls are hilarious!" Boomer shouted.
The girls glared at the boys, wanting to strike back, but knew that they can't. They just gave them death glares and tried to shouted verbal insults that was incomprehensible, if loud, due to the duct tape over their mouth.
After twenty minutes of continuous laughing, the boys finally stopped and regained their breathe. They stood up and looked to the girls.
"Now girls, it's unfair that only us boys should laugh so hard the past few minutes. You should have fun and laugh too," said Boomer with a wide grin on his face.
"But since you have very little to laugh about, we decided to make you laugh, so you can be happy, like us!" said Brick.
"But since we're very poor comedians, we decided to make you laugh the best way we can!" Butch finished. "By tickling!"
"And we just have the things we need for it!" said Brick, and the girls noticed that the three boys were holding gigantic feathers.
The girls' eyes widened, as they are very ticklish.
The three boys approached the girls with very wide grins on their faces, and commenced on the tickle torture. They first removed the girls' shoes then their socks, so that their feet were bare. Though Bubbles' feet were a problem because she wore thick tights, not socks, so her feet weren't bare like her sisters.
The boys then used their feathers to gently stroke the soles of their feet, and Buttercup and Blossom immediately shrieked of laughter. Any thought of holding back the laughter was forgotten as they immediately succumbed to laugher. They laughed very hard, that it was loud even with the tape over their mouth. They thrashed around as their body reacted from the sensations caused by the feather stroking the soles of their feet. Bubbles was luckier. She just laughed, but nothing more, since the tights reduced the effect.
The feather then stroked their shins, their knees and their thighs as the feather went up. Buttercup and Blossom laughed even harder, if it was possible. Boomer, however, found it impossible to tickle Bubbles on those parts because of Bubbles' long ankle-length dress and petticoats, so he had to contend to tickle on her armpits using his forefinger. Bubbles laughed as a result, but not as hard or as intense as her sisters because he had to tickle over her thick jacket and thick dress. Due to the ropes around her body, he just couldn't remove the jacket.
The tickles lasted for about a quarter of an hour, with the boys relentlessly stroking their tickle spots where they could. The girls couldn't resist so all they could do was laugh. Bubbles, however, got off lightly.
After the tickling, the girls were exhausted and breathing heavily. Their eyes, except for Bubbles, were in tears because of the excessive laughing.
"Want more tickling?" asked Butch, standing over them.
They shook their heads vigorously.
"Good. Now, it's not over yet. We have to gag you properly," said Brick. Boomer, who a couple of minutes earlier left, returned with a dozen socks and bandanas and two huge rolls of duct tape.
The boys removed the tape from their mouth, then packed their mouths with a huge wad composed this time of three socks instead of two, then pulled a wide and long bandana through their teeth, pulling the packing deeper into their mouth, then tying it tightly behind their heads. The boys then made the girls to bite on it and close their lips over it, then wrapped duct-tape around their heads over their lips ten times, though like before, they placed a piece of handkerchief over the hair where the tape was wound so their hair wouldn't be entangled by the sticky tape. Not contended, they tied two more bandanas over their duct-tape.
They then removed the rope around the three girls, and the rope tying their elbows together, to separate them from each other though the boys kept each individual girl tightly bound hand and foot. They hopped them to the bed, where they made the girls lie on their stomachs. Each of the boys took a piece of rope about a foot long, tied one end to their wrists, then bent their legs back ninety-degrees, then tied the other end of the rope on their ankles, putting them on hogtie.
At that point, the girls can barely move. They can shake their head, flutter their fingers, but that's it.
"Well girls, that's it! We'll see you in a couple of hours for lunch," said Brick before he and his brothers left the girls alone in the training room.
The girls, after the boys had left, tried to escape, but hog-tied, they found it impossible to shift their position on their bed. Granted, the girls found that it didn't hurt at all, and they weren't even physically fazed by all the pranks of the boys, but they were very uncomfortable, and they didn't like it at all.
It was nine in the morning, and it would only be five hours later, about two in the afternoon, when the boys again arrived, this time carrying a tray of food to the table.
The boys then undid the hogtie, though they didn't untie the rest of them, carried them to their chairs where they strapped them in for their lunch.
"Before I ungag you three, I want to say something to you," said Brick. "First of all, what we did this morning is just revenge for what you did to us in our dreams. Secondly, if you continue to attack us in our dreams tonight, we would continue our pranks on you. Remember, because you're locked up and tied and gagged, we can play pranks on you with impunity. I'll keep my promise to take care of you and not to hurt you while you three are our captives, but, but let's be clear. There are plenty of ways we can get revenge on you without hurting you or imperilling you. Thirdly, we won't hogtie anymore the rest of the afternoon, nor do any of our pranks for the rest of the day. We promise. Is that understood?"
F. Blossom's Proposal
The three girls nodded. The boys then removed their gags so they can feed them.
"Water," said a thirsty Bubbles. "I need water."
Boomer took a glass of water and let Bubbles drink from it using a straw.
"What you did this morning to us is despicable! We'll get back at you! We promise! We will!" Buttercup angrily said.
"You can't while you're awake," said Boomer, "and if you were able to try anything anyway, then we could easily get back at you!"
"Of course, Brick, you do realize, that when this is all over, when the Voice is defeated and we're allies again, that we would seek revenge," Blossom said.
"Yeah, you can easily access our dreams, and we can't," said Brick. "I suppose when this is all over, we'll pay for it. But we'll think a way to counter your dream powers in the meantime."
"Ha! Remember, when we're free, we can easily capture the three of you boys just as you can easily capture us now," said Buttercup.
"I'm looking forward to it, as we all know that it would be another spectacular failure," said Butch.
"We'll see," said Buttercup.
"Well, I was wrong. I thought you could have no way of getting back at us for what we did in your dreams short of hurting us, but I was wrong," said Blossom.
"Yeah! That rat really scared me!" said Bubbles.
"What's so scary about a rat? Why did you act so stupid when the rat crawled all over you?" asked Boomer.
"They're disgusting," said Blossom. "Anyway, aren't you going to feed us? We're hungry!"
The boys then fed the girls their lunch.
"Well, I guess we'll leave you now for your hour of talk," said Brick.
"Wait!" Blossom said.
"What?" asked Brick.
"Um, can I ask you a question?" the red-headed leader asked.
"Well?" Brick replied.
"How's the digging in the Central District going?" asked Blossom.
"If you want to know, the rubble from the demolition of the buildings was cleared, and they began digging. However, the idiots that Dad and the Professor hired forgot the sewers below the city, and so the digging was again delayed by the need to demolish the sewers and clear the rubble. That would continue until they hit some soil, then they'd bring in the bulldozers and shovels and begin shovelling dirt until they find whatever it is they're looking for," Brick answered.
"So they're still destroying the sewer system? How long do you think it would take for them to finish? I mean till they reach soft soil?" asked Buttercup.
"About ten days at least," said Boomer.
"But why aren't you helping them?" asked Bubbles. "Surely with you three, they'd have finished in a day."
"Dad wanted us to do nothing but babysit you three," said Brick. "Anyway, we're going to free you as soon as they got whatever it is they're trying to get. That's a promise."
"You will? But what about your Dad—" Buttercup asked.
"Look, we promised him that we would make sure you wouldn't disrupt their operations. Once their operations were completed, we have no reason to hold you anymore. He didn't give any order to hold you indefinitely, did he?" Brick replied.
"But what would your Dad say? Why would he approve it?" asked Blossom.
"Who said that Dad knew what we plan to do? He does not know. Unless you idiots tell him," said Brick.
"So you're doing it behind his back?" Buttercup asked. "But what if he ordered you to catch us again after we escape."
"Then you'd better find a really good-hiding place, and we might not catch you," said Butch.
"But why are you doing this?" asked Blossom. "Even if he didn't give explicit orders not to hold us, he would blow up on you if you did what you're planning to do."
"You're complaining?" asked Butch. "I thought you'd like it."
"No, we're not complaining," said Blossom. "We just want to know why you're doing this."
"Frankly, we don't like what we're doing right now, and the only reason we're doing this is out of loyalty," said Boomer.
"We won't ever violate direct orders from Dad, nor would we turn against him. However, we will do anything we want that doesn't contradict his orders," said Brick. "We have our own reasons for doing so. Suffice to say, it doesn't involve concern for you. We're doing it because it's in our own self-interests to do so. What that self-interest is, is none of your business. Just thank your lucky stars that your well-being coincides with our interests."
"Brick, wait! Thanks, but I have another proposition. Would it be possible for you to, say, delay the digging, or at least stop it, without you, violating any orders from your father or compromising your loyalty to him?" Blossom asked.
The boys looked at the girls wide-eyed. "You're mad!" Brick said. "If you do that, you realize, if we indefinitely delay it, then, unless Dad changes his mind about holding you, then you'd be prisoners indefinitely. And we won't let you go one minute before they finish what they're doing. Also, we wouldn't loosen up on the ropes tying you up or the gags shutting you up one bit till they finish it."
"Yes, but we're pretty sure your Dad would change his mind pretty soon and would order us released," said Blossom.
"Really? It's not good to bet the farm on such, you know," said Boomer.
"Don't worry, we'll manage it. What we need now is to delay the progress of the digging," said Blossom. "Look, I'm sure your Dad didn't make any order to not destroy it."
"Ah but there's the rub," said Brick. "He didn't, but it wouldn't prevent him from, say, issuing an order forbidding us from doing it once we did it, so it would only at best, delay it, and secondly, give us a serious beating. You don't know it, but the fact is, the morning after you escaped, Butch and me were beaten by using a hardetal cane till we were a bloody mess."
"Oh that's terrible!" said Blossom.
"Yes, but we deserve it for letting you escape. We shouldn't have tied you lightly before," said Boomer.
"But what he did is terrible!" Bubbles sincerely exclaimed.
"No it's not. What he did is perfectly appropriate punishment for us in view of our earlier incompetence," said Brick. "He's our father, and has every right to discipline us as he saw fit."
Blossom cringed. "But that's not fair. He ca—"
"Shut up! We don't want to discuss it! Now, let's get on with business. What is your proposition then?" Brick asked.
Blossom was more curious but decided to drop the issue. "Okay, so could you find a way to delay it without your father knowing it was you?"
"Even if we did it secretly, he would order us to stop whoever it was that delayed or stopped the digging, and you know we would never disobey a direct order from Dad," said Brick.
"Well, maybe we can find a way to solve that problem? Maybe I can think of a way for you and your brothers to secretly delay the digging in such a way that it would be impossible for your Dad to order you find out who did it? Wait a minute—only us, the Powerpuff Girls, are strong enough to require your attention. Since we are captives here, then it can't be us? And with you needing to babysit us, then you don't have time to go around the city looking for this, let's say, phantom saboteur? Plus, if you can make it look as if an ordinary human did the sabotage, then they can use the police to find them, and your father won't order you to stop them. Well, how about that?" said Blossom.
"Brilliant! But you left out crucial details," said Brick. "For example, how are you going to arrange for us to go out without Dad noticing? And, even if it is as flawless as it is brilliant, why would I do it? You have to give me a reason to."
"Well, we'll make you a deal. You do this, then we won't ever torment you in your dreams again, and when this is all over, we won't try to get revenge for the pranks you did this morning," Blossom offered.
"I'll think about it," said Brick. "However, making threats is not really a bright idea. Now, enough talk. I'll tell you what I think of your little scheme at lunch tomorrow. Anything else you want?"
"Um, can you put on our shoes and socks? The one you removed when you tickled us?" Bubbles asked.
"Anything else?" asked Brick.
"Well, can you tie the hem of my skirt to my knees like before? I don't like it sliding up my thighs and I can't pull it down with my hands tied," said Blossom.
"Yeah, mine too," said Bubbles, "on my ankles."
"Oh I think she doesn't want rats or roaches crawling up her legs," Butch snickered.
"Oh shut up!" said Brick. "Anything else?"
"Well, no," said Buttercup.
"Well, okay then. Butch, you do it," said Brick.
"Me?"
"Yes you!"
"But I don't want to baby those sissies," Butch protested.
"You'll do it because I say you do it!" Brick shouted to his brother. "Is that clear?"
"Yes," said Butch, as he obeyed his brother and put on the girls' socks and shoes, then tied the hem of Blossom's skirt to her legs, and Bubble's to her ankles.
"One more thing. Why aren't you mad or angry with us for the pranks, and how we treated you?" asked Boomer to the girls. "Any others and they would be livid with us. You always cooperate with us, and except for our dreams, and attempts to escape you were generally cooperative and model prisoners?"
"Because we trust you," said Bubbles. "And you'll never hurt us except in battle, and you're better than most other captors have been to us."
"And because we want us to be friends again and allies when this is all over. You may not believe us, but we're working to free your father from his dreams," said Blossom. "Look, why don't you untie us? We promise we won't try to escape? Can't you trust our word on it?"
"Girls, you know, at this point, I can trust you with anything except not escaping. If you hadn't made those two escape attempts before, then I might believe you if you say you won't escape. Sorry, no can do. I can't take that risk," said Brick. "Boomer, get fresh socks and bandannas and another roll of duct tape."
"But what about our one-hour break to talk among ourselves?" Bubbles asked.
"We already used it," said Brick.
Boomer opened his backpack and got the materials and put it on the table. "Don't worry girls, these are newly washed socks as always!" said Boomer as he wadded it up. He then gagged the girls the same way, with three large and thick socks stuffed in their mouth, then a bandana over it, duct tape over their close lips and around their head ten times, then two more bandana were wrapped over the tape and tied behind their heads.
They then unstrapped the girls from the chairs and carried them to the bed. This time, they didn't hog-tie them, so at least they can hop around the room.
"Well, don't go anywhere till we come back with your dinner," said Brick, before he and his brothers left the room.
Author Thanks
This story was deleted along with all the reviews, but I decided to include my replies to the author notes as they could give some information about this story.
To Lynx Sarnage, well, the boys can take the girls' offer, then they might not have to worry about the girls invading their dreams again.
To Tones, well, you know have the answer to your questions in this chapter.
Yup! Boomer is still afraid of Bubbles.
To Kezzer, well, the boys don't really want the girls to escape, and the boys simply want the girls not to feel to mad at the boys if they could help it so they want the girls to be comfortable as well as locked up.
Nope, it won't be easy freeing Dr. Edwards. Just how hard? Well, we'll have to see.
To Dooly, well, the girls wanted the boys to free them, and forcing them by tormenting them in their dreams seemed like a good idea.
Well, the boys simply thought that the Professor made the same choice as Dr. Edwards with regards to being evil.
Well, thank you. I just want to let the reviewers know that I appreciate each and every review.
To BrYtt BRatt, when did I ever make short chapters?
Well, now you know what happened. There's still hope that Dr. Edwards can be freed in his dream.
To Kim, well, they didn't know they could either. They just tried and hoped it would work. It worked.
Well, I won't say if the girls are married to the boys in the Doctor's dream.
To Hairy Gregory, I wonder what kind of damage that would be? I'm curious.
Well, they were able to have their revenge without hurting them, it seems.
I agree about Boomer and Bubbles in five years.
Well, they can't fight the Voice—yet. About the plan, well, it would depend on what information Walter could give them.
To Scott Boyo, well, the girls might or might not have married the boys in the Doctor's dream, but I ain't telling. Though you could easily tell by the way the adult ruffs talked.
The Voice was more than willing to let the wish be repudiated. The problem is Dr. Edwards is still stuck in his own mind.
Well, having the ability to imprison one in one's own mind and take over your body in the process makes you dangerous enough, don't you think?
To Akum, thanks.
To Zero Unknown, well, thanks for the compliments. As for your criticisms, I thought I made him cool enough in my other stories and previous chapters? As for him wearing the dress, well, Blossom did control his dream, and she wanted to torment him to force him to free her. As for me repeating things, well, I do that to drive home the point, but it is noted and I will try to cut down on it in future chapters. Thanks for the advice.
To Firespirit, yup! The boys controls the girls in the real world, while the girls control the dreams of the boys if the girls visited their dreams.
Well, whatever they know, they'd be always loyal to their father, evil or not. As I said, the boys assumed that the Professor made the same choice of being evil as their father.
To John, now you know the boys' revenge.
