Foreword: Be warned, this chapter deals with heavy topics.
Transmission 4: Open Wounds.
Sector V look around in awe at the hangar. The last time they were here was when they were placed into a prison transport headed to the Moon Base. The hangar hasn't changed much from before, except for the thick layer of dust that covers everything. "So how did you keep this place intact Numbuh 1? I thought they chopped the Treehouse down when we fled." Hoagie asks.
"Not exactly. They emptied the Treehouse two days after we went rogue but they only removed it from the Global Communication Grid, relocated the hamsters and shut down everything. Besides, my house is right below it so they really couldn't put a new team here. They built a new Treehouse to cover the same area. Apparently, leaving this place to stand was their last sign of respect to us."
"How sweet of 'em." Abby says sarcastically.
"Now, because they moved away our hamsters, every time I visit here, I've had to use the electricity from my own house. So, if it's not too much to ask Numbuh 3, could you make your ghost hamsters reactivate the power core?"
"Are you sure about this? What if she faints again?" Abby asks and looks at Kuki.
"It's okay. I only get tired when I overuse my magic. They'll be happy to help." She says with a smile.
"Good. Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 4, I want you two to go to the armory and reactivate the D.E.F.E.N.S.E.-G.R.I.D. Numbuh 5, you're coming with me to the main briefing room. We have to restart the Treehouse's computer system and rewire it so that it will recognize us as allies."
"Gotcha baby." Abby says.
"Will do." Hoagie gives him a thumbs-up. But as they start walking towards a door at the left corner of the hangar when suddenly footsteps are heard coming from the dark hallway. The steps sound odd as the other step seems mechanical while the other is normal. As footsteps increase and become louder, the teens become alerted by the sound. "What's that sound? Is someone there?"
"Whatever it is, Numbuh 2, it's comin' fast!" Abby says as everyone except Nigel brace themselves when a silhouette appears in the hallway.
Before anyone can react, the unknown creature tackles Kuki and they immediately recognize who the stranger is. "BRADLEY!" Kuki shrieks as she hugs the cyborg skunk while Hoagie and Abby gather around her and are surprised by the arrival of the little skunk.
Honorary Kids Next Door Operative Numbuh 6, a.k.a. R.O.B.O.-B.R.A.D.L.E.Y. received his honorary membership after the little skunk assisted the KND in taking down an oppressive summer camp controlled by the villain Chester. He was later given an upgrade by Hoagie after he was hit by a truck. Due to his cybernetic parts, he stopped aging and still has the appearance of a juvenile skunk.
"Um, Numbuh 1, you wanna explain?"
"Of course, Numbuh 5. You see after we fled decommissioning, I had to make sure no one would try to get inside our Treehouse. So, I asked Numbuh 6 to guard it until we could come back. It did take some persuading though. He wasn't very happy about us leaving him behind."
"Oh Bradley! I promise I won't leave you ever again!" Kuki shouts as she hugs the skunk tighter.
"So, you're sayin' that this cruddy skunk has been sitting here for three years while we were gone? Man, no wonder nobody tried to get in. This place must reek." Wally says. He never had a good relationship with Bradley; mainly because Kuki considered it her baby and Wally hated its smell. He was also jealous of the attention the skunk got from her. Likewise, Bradley didn't like him and anytime he mocked him, Bradley would blast him with his eye-laser, whack him with his cybernetic arm or fire stink missiles at him.
Bradley immediately recognizes Wally's voice and fires his eye-laser at him. In the past, the blast would've thrown him across the hangar but now, Wally simply activates his energy shield, blocking the laser. "Hah, you're gonna have to do better than that to take me on, you stinker!" He taunts the skunk and it growls at him.
However, before either can do anything else, Kuki intervenes. "Hey stop that! Old friends shouldn't be fighting when they meet each other again."
"Hmph, I don't remember being friends with a cruddy skunk." Wally says callously and heads towards the hallway.
"Hey, wait for me, Numbuh 4!" Hoagie runs after him as Kuki becomes sad due to Wally's behavior.
"Come on Numbuh 3, you know he don't mean that."
"But I hoped they could finally get along…"
"Well, you can't expect old enemies becoming friends just like that. Anyways let's get on with the restoration. Numbuh 6, lead Numbuh 3 to the core. Numbuh 5, we'll head to the briefing room."
"Okay! Lead the way, Bradley." Kuki and Bradley head down the stairs leading to the power core while further inside the Treehouse, Hoagie and Wally arrive at a fork in the hallway.
"So which way was the armory again?"
"Hmm, let me think. If I remember correctly, it was at the end of the left-hand hallway." Wally nods and heads towards the dark and empty left side corridor while Hoagie walks beside him. "So why did you have to start fighting with Bradley immediately after you saw him with Kuki?"
"I didn't do anything, the cruddy skunk shot at me."
"Because you insulted him. Look, you know that Kuki's gonna be sad if the only thing you do when you see Bradley is to start fighting with him."
"Yeah, I know, but that cruddy skunk always messed around with me. He shot me, whacked me and left a stench that took weeks to get rid of. I just wanted a bit payback."
"Well, that side of you hasn't changed at all." Hoagie grumbles silently.
"What did ya say?"
"Nothing."
They walk through the dark hallway until it becomes too dark to see anything. "Aw man, I should've brought a flashlight or a lantern or something. It's pitch-black in here."
"It got ya covered, mate." Wally says and activates a small spotlight from his helmet's visor.
"Man, that suit's really handy." Wally chuckles as they continue along until they arrive in front of a large steel door taken from a submarine. Hoagie tries to open the door but the handle is too stiff. "Come on man, give me a hand." Wally also grabs the handle and the door opens with a loud screech as dust streams out of the room. "Achoo! Ugh, this dust is everywhere. Hey Numbuh 4, go and check the weapons vault. See if there's anything we can use."
"Okay." Wally opens the vault's door but finds it empty. "Uhm Numbuh 2, this place is empty."
"Damn. They must've taken all the weapons too along with the hamsters. Is there anything else?"
"Just some spare parts."
"That's perfect, I'll put them to use tomorrow." Suddenly the lights come back on and the D.E.F.E.N.S.E-G.R.I.D.'s screen is turned on. "Numbuh 3 must've gotten the core up and running. Let's finish this quickly, I'm really tired and hungry."
"Same here, Numbuh 2." Hoagie starts tinkering with the wires while Wally inspects the rest of the weapons vault. Meanwhile, Kuki arrives to the common room and jumps on the couch but the moment she lands on it, dust flies out of it and she starts coughing.
"Aw there's too much dust everywhere! We really need to clean this place up Bradley." She huffs and gets while Bradly nods to her.
Then, Nigel and Abby also enter the common room through the staircase. "Good job with reactivating the core Numbuh 3. I hope there weren't any problems?"
"Of course not. Powering the core was what they did when they were alive. And they don't get tired because of they're ghosts."
"*yawn* Man, today's been crazy. Numbuh 5 is gonna get her beauty sleep."
"I agree. We'll continue tomorrow. Good night."
Abby walks towards the stairs when she bumps into Hoagie as he and Wally are returning from the armory. "Oh, sorry Numbuh 5." Hoagie apologizes immediately while Abby shrugs it off.
"Is cool. You two done with the armory?"
"Yeah, I reactivated the D.E.F.E.N.S.E.-G.R.I.D. and Wally checked the weapon vault."
"Did you find anything useful in there?" Nigel asks but both boys shake their heads in response.
"Just some spare parts, nothing else."
"Alright. Anyway, good job everyone. We'll hold a briefing tomorrow morning to plan our next move."
"That better not be before 10am or Numbuh 5 won't sleep enough."
"Fine, I'll set the computer's general alarm at 10am and we'll meet in the briefing room at 10:30. Understood?"
"Sure…*yawn* I'm going to sleep." Wally says but before he can leave, Abby stops him.
"Wait a minute Numbuh 4. Seriously, how long are ya gonna hide in that armor?"
"Wha…? I ain't hiding..."
"If ya got nothin' to hide then why can't ya take it off here?"
"Numbuh 5, you shouldn't force him…" Kuki tries to mediate but Abby ignores her.
"Nuh-uh, this ain't gonna work if ya hide in the armor all the time. Numbuh 4, you are hidin' something aren't you?"
"I AM NOT!" Wally becomes agitated but Abby stands her ground.
"Then why are ya shoutin' like that?"
"Cause I'm tired and you're pissing me off!"
"And you hiding behind that B.R.A. is drivin' Numbuh 5 crazy. Now. Take. It. Off!" She shouts and their argument intensifies. Wally and Abby shout at each other while Hoagie and Nigel try in vain to calm them down.
Then, Kuki becomes frustrated by the shouting and arguing, forcing her to take matters into her own hands. "JUST TAKE THE STUPID SUIT OFF ALREADY!" She shouts as her medallion glows red and she fires a burst of electricity towards Wally.
"AAARGH!" He yells as his armor short-circuits, shuts down and he collapses on his knees. Underneath his armor, he's still wearing his signature orange hoodie but this one has a zipper. He also wears a pair of blue jeans and black sneakers. His blonde hair is slightly longer and shaggier but not as clean cut as it was before despite still covering his emerald green eyes. Without his armor, he is now way shorter than Hoagie and about the same height as Nigel and Abby, but only slightly taller than Kuki.
Kuki immediately runs to his side and starts to apologize. "Ohmigosh I'm so sorry Wally! I didn't mean to use that much power, I just wanted the fighting to stop, please forgive me I'm really sorry…" Kuki stops her rambling mid-sentence and gasps when she sees his face.
She takes few steps back while covering her mouth as Wally stands up while Hoagie also takes a look. "Hey what's wrong Numbuh 3? WHOAH!" He nearly falls on his back from the shock while Abby is stunned.
"Aw man that's just nasty." Abby says as Wally glares at her. A large scar runs down the left side of his face. It starts at the hairline, stops right above the left eye and continues from his left cheek down to the chin. He looks at everyone with an angry expression.
"You happy now, Numbuh 5?" He says coldly while glaring at his old teammates.
"Dude, where did you get that scar?" Hoagie asks cautiously.
"Hmpf, ask Nigel." Wally replies angrily and glares at Nigel prompting the others to also turn their eyes at him.
"What are you talking about Numbuh 4? We haven't seen each other for three years. How could I know anything about that?" His reply makes Wally even more furious.
"Don't play dumb with me!" He shouts, startling everyone. "You know all about this thing, because you're the one who did it!" Now Abby intervenes.
"Hey calm down Numbuh 4. Why would Numbuh 1 do something like that? You're not makin' any sense."
"You stay out of this!" Wally glares at Abby and looks back at Nigel. "Then I'll refresh your memory: 2 months ago, at Father's Mansion, you were in the dungeon with him. You two entered a cell that had a gagged, blindfolded prisoner chained to a wall. That prisoner was ME!" He pauses for a moment while the others stare at him in shock. "Father told ya to leave a mark. He called it a "rite of passage" or something. It didn't seem too hard for ya to carve my face with a knife. You also cut the gag but I guess you didn't recognize me even from the screaming. And to make it even better, Father told you throw hot charcoal on me as well."
Nigel is mortified as he immediately recalls the events and takes a few steps back. "…How could I have… Of course, everything makes sense now. Why else would you say you couldn't trust me…?" he slumps down on a dusty chair and looks at his hands. He is visibly shaken from the sudden realization as Abby and Hoagie go to his side while a distraught Kuki tries to approach Wally.
"You said that everything you've been doing up to now has been for the truth! Was torturing yer own teammate also part of your cruddy plan!?" he spits and stomps towards the stairway as Abby tries to call after him.
"Numbuh 4, wait! I'm sorry I tried to..."
"Leave me alone! I'm goin' to bed." Wally cuts her off as he disappears into the stairs, leaving the others to the common room.
Abby then turns towards their leader. "Nigel, is it true? About what ya did?"
Nigel looks at her with a blank expression. It's as if all emotion had been drained from him, leaving nothing but an empty shell. "It's true." A unified gasp is heard from the others. "Father told me to prove myself to him, to show him that I'd be willing to hurt others without remorse, especially kids and teenagers. But I swear I didn't know it was Wally. I should've recognized him from all the screaming but I had blocked all emotion, to make the experience easier for myself. You have to believe me! I would never do something like that to anyone if I had a choice!" He pleads the others to understand.
"*sigh* It's alright Numbuh 1. If anyone's to blame for this stupid mess its Numbuh 5." She says dejectedly and also heads to the stairs. "Numbuh 5's goin' to bed too." she says with a shaky voice with her head hunched down while Hoagie immediately notices a tear in her eye as she leaves.
"I better go too. I need to make sure she's alright." Hoagie says as he runs after her while Nigel looks at Kuki, who hasn't said a word but is the most distraught by the revelations.
"I'm sorry you had to hear all this Kuki…" He slowly makes his way to the elevator and goes all the way down to his real room in his house, making Kuki and Bradley the only ones left in the common room. She sighs wistfully and switches off the lights before she walks away to her room.
…
Hoagie runs through the hallways and corridors towards Abby's room. He stopped by his own room and took the two sleeping bags from his Exo-suit, leaving it there. As he arrives at another hallway, he sees a light shining through under Abby's door.
The door is slightly open and as Hoagie takes a peek, he sees her staring at a large mirror on the wall. She has thrown her kerchief on to the floor and has let her hair down. "Look at you Abigail Lincoln. You really messed up this time. I shouldn't have been so stupid. No wonder he didn't wanna take that armor off, I should've stopped and just gone to bed. You stupid, useless, embarrassing, wannabee pirate!" She shouts and hits her head on to the mirror, leans on it and breathes heavily. Abby then walks towards the window and opens it, causing dust to fly everywhere as the wind breezes through the room, causing Hoagie to sneeze, notifying Abby of his presence. She opens the door and sees Hoagie on his knees, staring up at her. "What are you doin' here Numbuh 2?" She looks at him with suspicion and crosses her arms.
"Oh umm…I thought you'd like to have one of these." He stumbles up and offers her the other sleeping bag. "I figured it'd be tough for you to sleep in a bed that hasn't been used for three years. This'll make it a bit easier."
Abby chuckles a bit and takes the sleeping bag. If there was one person she could always rely on, it was Hoagie. Ever since he had joined the Kids Next Door and became a member of Sector V, the goggle headed boy had always been the most reliable person she knew. Though he was more famous because of his bad jokes and inventiveness, Abby had always had a soft spot for him. Especially during the last years before they separated. She had somehow found herself enjoying his company more than with anyone else and she would tell him all her worries, something she didn't do with others.
"Thanks, Numbuh 2." She tries to smile weakly and starts to close the door. Hoagie however puts his foot in between the door and forces himself in. Closing the door behind him, Hoagie stands before Abby, who starts to protest. "What do ya think you're doin' Numbuh 2. I don't remember lettin' you in. Please, Numbuh 5 just wants to be alone."
Hoagie comes closer and looks directly at her but Abby tries to look away. "Abby, I heard what you said in front of the mirror."
Abby immediately becomes agitated. "Well, aren't you a gentleman, eavesdropping on girls. Don't ya know anythin' about privacy?! she shouts but even though her comment hurts him, Hoagie stands firm.
"Come on, I'm serious."
"And Numbuh 5's serious too. Now get out!" She starts to push him towards the door but Hoagie resists.
"Stop being so stubborn Abby! You've been crying, haven't you?! I can see that on your face!" he shouts, forcing Abby to pushing him.
She then immediately tries to cover her eyes. "Wha…What are you talkin' about Numbuh 2? Numbuh 5 just got dust in her eyes, that's all!"
"How long have we known each other? I know when you've been crying, Abigail Lincoln!"
He takes off his beanie and pulls his goggles to his forehead as Abby remembers Hoagie does this only when he's serious. She steps back and slumps down on her bed. She clenches her fists and starts shaking as she tries to stop herself from crying, prompting Hoagie to sit down next to her and put his right arm around her shoulder. Feeling the warmth coming from him, Abby starts to silently cry against his shoulder as Hoagie runs his hand through her smooth hair and tries to calm her down. "It's gonna be alright Abby. Don't blame yourself…I kinda thought that something like this would happen, because we all went through bad times… You don't have to feel guilty about. Kuki will probably keep him company. You know how she is. We can talk things out with them tomorrow. Everything's going to be ok." Hoagie's words manage to calm Abby down a little.
"But…what about Nigel? You think Wally's gonna forgive him?" She says with a raspy voice.
"I don't know, but I kinda understand why he wants to get decommissioned after all that's happened to him." He then let's go of Abby so that he can see her face. If there was one thing that could make his heart wrench it would be Abby's teary-eyed expression. "Come on, get some sleep. You need it after all the stuff that's happened."
Abby lifts her head and smiles weakly at Hoagie. "Thanks Hoagie. You're a girl's best friend."
Hoagie suddenly turns red and quickly jumps up from the bed. "Oh umm…. Well, uh, I better go, I gotta go and clear the dust from my room so I can sleep. Uhm… good night Numbuh 5!" He stutters in embarrassment and is his rush to get out, he hits his head on the door frame. "OW! My head! Come on; pull yourself together Hoagie P. Gilligan Junior. Uhm…Bye!" He rambles and quickly runs away down the hallway as Abby looks from the door at his vanishing figure.
"Man, he might be more handsome, but he's still the same guy he was three years ago. Thanks for bein' there for me, Hoagie." She smiles and closes the door.
…
Kuki, with Bradley in her arms, walks solemnly through the hallway that leads to her room. Bradley looks up to her and can sense that she is sad, so the cyborg skunk moves its head up and licks her cheek.
"Oh Bradley, I know you're trying to make me feel better but I'm sorry. I just feel horrible for Wally and everyone else. I shouldn't have gotten so angry at him." She says and stops in front of a large curtain that has number three painted on it. Unlike the others in Sector V, her room didn't have a normal door. It instead had a green curtain, but now after all the years, its worn and ripped from the edges. She moves the curtain aside and as she does, a large cloud of dust erupts out of the curtain. "This dust is driving me crazy!" She yells as she enters the room, which, in the past would've been filled to the brim with her Rainbow Monkey collection and other plushies. But now, a barren room greets her as she had emptied it a day before Sector V was disbanded. Even her bed, which was a giant stuffed animal, is there no more and only a closet remains.
Kuki walks around the room and sighs wistfully. "Where are we going to sleep Bradley? I don't have a bed to speak of." Out of curiosity, she opens the closet and finds some old clothes from three years ago that she had left there. Her old butterfly Halloween–costume is there as well as her nurse's outfit and the pink outfit she wore during the fourth-grade play that was based on 'West Side Story'. She played the female lead opposite to the Delightful Children from Down the Lane, but Wally had interfered in the play right before her kiss scene. Lastly, she finds one of her old green sweaters, that she had worn up to when she was 12. Kuki spreads out the shirt and notices that because it's so big, it still fits her. She puts it on and to her surprise, it's a perfect fit, albeit dusty. However, the sleeves don't go over her hands anymore as she has grown a lot since she last wore it. With her confidence restored; she picks up Bradley.
"Come on Bradley, let's go see Wally. I have to apologize to him." she swiftly runs out of her room and down a flight of stairs, towards the lower levels of the Treehouse where Wally's room is located. When she finally arrives in front of his room, it's quiet. When they were younger, the only time Wally's room was quiet was when he was sleeping. Whenever Kuki couldn't sleep, she would sneak in to his room and look at him sleeping in his orange footie pajamas. His sleeping form caused her to feel sleepy as well. Sometimes she even slept in his bed with him, but he never noticed as she always snuck out before he woke up.
Kuki slowly opens the door and sneaks in. His room had been a training room of sorts, with different punching bags and training robots that Wally had used to practice his fighting skills. Now everything in the room is destroyed, the punching bags have been sliced and the offline robots have been turned to pieces. Kuki skips through the scrapped machines and reaches Wally's bed, a large boxing ring. As she climbs on top of it, sees him: Wally's lying on his back with his hands behind his head, listening to music from his MP3 Player. Kuki crawls on all fours along the boxing ring and sits down next him. Then Wally senses that someone's there and upon opening his eyes, he's startled by Kuki leaning over him and instinctively jumps up. "What the heck are ya doin' here Kuki!?" He shouts as Kuki smiles cheerfully.
"I wanted to see how you were doing, Wally." she then looks around the ruined room.
"What happened here?" Wally glances at the layer of trash littering the floor and looks away.
"Oh that? Well…I kinda had to let out some steam."
The conversation fades in to an awkward silence as Wally keep's staring into the distance, deliberately keeping the scar from Kuki's sight. However, his behavior doesn't go unnoticed as Kuki tries to speak to him. "I'm sorry for zapping you, Wally. It's my fault that you got angry at everyone. I just couldn't stand the yelling and shouting when we finally got home." she wraps her arms around her legs.
"Well, you should be sorry." his rather blunt answer causes her to press her face against her knees. "But I'm not blamin' ya for what happened. I was just pissed off…"
Kuki lifts her head and looks at Wally, who still tries to evade eye contact. "Do you hate Nigel for what he did?"
"I don't know...It just makes me angry that the guy talks about how he always worked for that one goal and yet he was willin' to torture me to reach it. He didn't recognize me, not even from the screamin'." Kuki looks at Wally and can't help but feel sad for him. She leans closer to him and looks directly at him, which makes Wally uncomfortable with her being so close. "What are you doing?" he says as his face starts turning red.
"Let me see the scar again." she insists and intently stares at him with her brown eyes.
After a bit of hesitation, Wally allows it. "Fine…" he looks at her and pulls his blond hair away. She puts her left-hand index finger on to his hairline and runs it along the scar. Though it is healed, the skin around it is still sensitive and Wally flinches as she touches his cheek.
"It must've hurt." She says with a sorrowful expression.
"You have no idea." He replies solemnly as Kuki moves even closer to him, their faces being now only centimeters away from each other. Wally turns red and panics. "Hey, what are you…" Wally can't finish his sentence as Kuki plants a small kiss on his left cheek. He immediately stands up and looks at her in embarrassment. "Why the heck did ya do that!?" he shouts.
"Now it'll heal faster." She giggles gently. "That's weird; when we were young, he'd always start wiping his cheek and call me names." she thinks as Wally sits back down, hair covering his red face. "Do you have more scars?"
"Why are you so interested about my cruddy scars all of a sudden?" he replies angrily.
"I want to know everything they did to you so I can help you heal your wounds."
"There's nothing you can do about it now. You're two months late on that…" he stops as he realizes that his comment hurt her.
Kuki's eyes begin filling with tears as she stares at Wally. "Yeah, well maybe I wasn't there for you back then but at least I'm here now! It's not like you were there for me when I needed you!" she shouts in a mixture of grief and anger as her medallion blinks red.
"Wait, what do ya mean by that?"
"You think you're the only who's been suffering for these three years. What do you think I felt like when you all left me!? I had no one, NO ONE!" she starts crying uncontrollably.
"What happened, Kuki?!" Wally becomes genuinely concerned and grabs her shoulders.
"You all abandoned me! I couldn't make any friends in school and they bullied me! They called me a freak and a loser! I've been alone for three years! Not even the ghost hamsters could replace all of you guys!" Wally feels sick to his stomach. He hadn't realized that even though she had put a brave face for everyone; she had gone through terrible things too. Kuki starts removing her gloves. "I even ended up doing this to myself." she throws away her gloves and pulls up her sleeves, revealing her wrists which are cluttered with scars.
Wally is mortified by their sheer number. "What the hell did you do Kuki?! Tell me!" he shouts, still holding on to her shoulders.
"I…I tried to kill myself." Wally becomes stunned and stares at her blankly. "Mushi stopped me before it got out of hand and I ended up in hospital. I don't do that anymore. I was just so alone, Wally. There was no one I could've turned to for help."
Without any hesitation, Wally swoops her in to a tight hug. "I'm sorry Kuki. I should've kept my big mouth shut. I'm really sorry."
Kuki wraps her arms around his back and leans her left cheek on his left cheek. She doesn't cry anymore, but continues to sniff. Normally Bradley would've immediately tried to separate them but now, the skunk sits next to Kuki and watches on. "Thanks Wally." Kuki says with a trembling voice.
"We need to let the others know about this, Kuki. I promise that you don't have to be alone ever again, you can count on it!" Wally lets go of Kuki as wipes her eyes into her sweater sleeves. She then wraps her arms around Wally's right arm, but he doesn't protest. Neither teenager says anything as they simply sit there, enjoying the silence. Bradley jumps on Kuki's lap and she starts petting its right side, since its left side is completely mechanical. Wally looks at her as she pets the skunk and starts smiling a bit.
"Hey, you CAN smile! I thought you forgot how to do that." Kuki says jokingly.
"Of course, I can smile…when I feel like…"
"Riight." Kuki grins at him.
After a bit of hesitation, Wally tries to continue the previous conversation."Um…You wanted to see those scars?" He asks cautiously.
"Yeah. Unless you don't want to do that now."
"Its fine, I mean you showed me yours…" He slowly pulls back his right-hand sleeve, revealing multiple burn marks.
"Did Nigel do these too?"
"Yeah, when he threw that charcoal at me, but most of them landed on my back cause I was hunched down a bit. Some of them went between my back and the wall. It hurt like hell."
"I believe you." She again runs her fingers through the burn scars and grabs his hand. "Don't worry Wally; I'll make sure all of your wounds will heal."
"Thanks Kuki…" Kuki grins but suddenly she starts yawning. "You oughta go to bed."
"Yeah, I would silly, but I kinda sorta don't have a bed in my room…"
"Oh yeah, its cause yer bed was a giant Rainbow Dorkie."
"THEY'RE RAINBOW MONKEYS!" She shouts, her expression resembling a Japanese oni.
"Yeah, yeah, calm down. Sheesh." Wally rolls his eyes and "Does she still love those stupid Dorkies?"
"As long as you keep calling them by that name, I'll yell every time." Kuki huffs and eyes Wally disapprovingly.
"Whatever. So where were you plannin' to sleep?"
Kuki fidgets slightly and points at the boxing ring they are sitting in. "I was hoping you'd let me sleep here?"
Her request surprises Wally, making him stutter. "Oh well...I guess you can sleep here…"
"YAY!"
"I ain't got no blankets though so you're gonna have to figure something out. And don't kick me in your sleep."
"I don't do that silly."
Wally turns off the lights and lies down on the boxing ring. Kuki and Bradley fall asleep almost immediately. For a while Wally rolls around but he can't get any sleep. Something is nagging him in the back of his mind. He had been away from home for two months after all. He stands up and silently sneaks out of his room. Upon leaving the Treehouse, he activates his B.R.A. and flies out into the night sky, heading towards the city's outskirts.
End of Transmission 4