Chapter Seven

Abby sat in her room a few days later, pulling her hair out to brush it. Though Nigel had told them to keep their guards up at all times, he also mentioned of no traces of any danger. Abby took this opportunity to tend to her hair. There was a knock on the door, and Francine stood in the doorway.

"Mind if I come in?" She asked quietly. Abby gestured for the all clear, and Francine locked the door behind her. She sat down on the bed beside the French girl, and noticed she was having difficulty. "Here, give me the brush."

Abby reluctantly handed it over, and shuffled forward a little so Francine could sit behind her to do her hair. Abby went a shade of pink as the other girl's legs were positioned either side of her. Francine thought nothing of it, but Abby found it quite embarrassing. She hesitated for a brief moment, before resting her elbows on the other girl's knees. Abby sighed peacefully at the tranquility of the room, and relaxed as the brush glided through her hair.

"So, what made you decide to take it out?" Francine asked, brushing ever so delicately.

"Keeping my end of the bargain." Abby smirked mischievously. "So, are you gonna keep yours or what?"

The Scot stopped for a second, then continued to play with the girl's hair. "I think you're gonna hafta wait a little bit longer."

Is she flirting with me? Abby asked herself as she felt the girl splitting her hair into three pieces and braiding them together. "So why do I have to wait, huh? Keeping me in suspense for an amazing finale or something?"

Francine pat the girl's shoulder for the lacky. "Maybe." She flicked the braid over Abby's shoulder. "You're all done."

Abby turned to face the girl, and then it hit her hard. As they looked at each other for what seemed like forever, Abby realized they were having a moment. A moment that was shattered by the Scot's voice.

"So, want to look pretty for Numbuh 1, ey?" She teased. Abby shook her head.

"I thought you liked Numbuh 1?"

"I thought you did…you seemed jealous when…" Then it hit her. "Oh, I see."

Abby tuned away and hung her head in embarrassment and waited for a rant of some sort. But it never came. Instead, the red head moved around to look into the girl's face.

"I'm sorry." Abby said in a bummed tune.

"What for?"

Abby looked up and saw something in Francine's eyes that she had only ever seen once.

Love.

And it was right there that Abby knew Kuki was wrong. It wasn't just some silly phase in her love life; this was for real. The red head grabbed Abby's hand, and laced her fingers in between them. Abby knew then that the one she loved shared the same feelings for her. The French girl, with her free hand, grabbed the worn out helmet and pulled it clean off the other girl's head, causing her fringe to take its place over her right eye, and her frizzy hair to take its natural form.

"That's better." Abby said calmly, making the other girl blush. "And it was definitely worth the wait."

"Hmmm." The Scot replied, cupping the girl's chin with her hands. And very slowly, she inched her face closer. Abby copied, growing excited as their noses brushed together; getting nervous as the lips were centimeters apart. Her gloss covered bottom lip trembled as she felt her crushes lips brush over it, and slowly, their lips intertwined.

Abby felt like she was in heaven as she snaked her arms around the other girl's neck and deepened their kiss. Francine moved her hands down to wrap around her crushes waist and pulled her in closer. She realized she had failed 362, but nothing mattered at the point in time they were in. She used her own body to push the other girl down, as stroked her cheek as their lips parted.

"Tell me I'm not dreaming." Abby said, running a hand through the red frizziness of her lover's hair.

"Well, I can happily say it isn't a dream." Francine kissed her forehead. "I just have one question though. Out of all the people you could've had, why me?"

Abby had never really thought about it, and just assumed her heart knew the answer. "I don't know really. I guess I just knew there was something different about you. I knew you weren't the toughie everybody thinks you truly are."

"I guess I felt the same about you." Francine tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I knew there was something mysterious about you, and I want to find out what it is."

"Well, now you can." They both smiled, and as they went to kiss again, they were stopped by a knock on the door.

"Sorry, did I interrupt something?" Came the voice of Kuki. "Oooh, are you playing pile up?"

Abby went to tell her what they were really doing, but a hand clasped over her mouth before she could breathe a word. Fanny smiled and nodded. "Sure we are, wanna join in?"

Kuki's eyes lit up in excitement. "I'd love to! YAY!" She bounded over and leapt up on Fanny's back. Abby squealed as the other two girls both came crashing down and pinning her at the bottom of the pile. The girls started laughing as hard as they could, but settled down when Numbuh 254 came to lean on the doorway.

"And what exactly are you doing to Numbuh 5?" She asked in a cool tone. "Trying to kill her or something?"

"C'mon Numbuh 254, we're just having a little bit of fun." Kuki said giggling loudly. "Wanna join in?"

254 looked from her boss to Kuki to Abby and back to Fanny. "Well, it is considered immature…but what the heck. Move over people, Krystal is in the house!"

She leapt up, and the four tangled bodies rolled off onto the floor. The girls were in fits as they started taking arms out of leg loopholes, and untangling fingers from toes.

"What the heck happened here?" Nigel's voice asked with a hint of concern, and a hint of annoyance. "You looked like you attempted to beat up bad guys in the dark or something."

Fanny was the first to get up and adjusted herself. "Oh lighten up baldy, we were only having a wee bit of fun. If you even know what that word means."

"Surprisingly red, I do know the definition of fun." He gestured to the other three girls. "And this doesn't come close to it."

"You really know how to spoil fun, don't you?" She folded her arms in a competitive way.

"Whatever you say, Fannykins." He smirked at her ever so increasing anger from his mock. "Look, the reason I came was to talk to you about important issues."

"Important how?" Please, he knew she was stubborn, but this stubborn?

"Can you just come with me?"

She sighed in defeat. "Fine, if it's that important." She went to walk off, but stopped and turned to Abby. "I'll meet you on the balcony later, ok?"

As she walked out the door with Nigel, Abby giggled at his final comment. "You know Numbuh 86, I didn't think you could actually have fun."

"Better believe it buddy."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Abby sat up on her bedroom balcony railing, swinging her legs and looking out into the horizon. It was a deep red, with tinges of pink and violet through the clouds passing by. She heard loud footsteps on the boards behind her, and found Fanny leaning on the doorframe with her arms folded. Though, the glint in her eye was gone, and her expression was that of what she'd use on Nigel or Wally.

"Numbuh 3 told me that you were waiting for me." She said in a monotone. Abby nodded to confirm.

"Well, you said you were gonna come and talk to me after you made the reports with Numbuh 1."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Fanny seemed a little confused. "Numbuh 1 wanted me to do reports with him?"

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Abby thought Fanny's joke was getting a little annoying. "You were in my room a few minutes ago. You saw Nigel come in and you had another one of your squabbles with hi before leaving. Then you said you'd meet me here to talk."

Fanny looked like she'd been smacked by a fry pan several times. The cogs in her head came to an awkward rusty standstill, and her eyebrow slowly cocked itself. "T-that's impossible. I was running an errand for Rache…I mean, Numbuh 362 this morning. She privately contacted me and wanted me to investigate a fumigation down the road."

"Are you for real, or are you seriously trying to be a twit?" Abby was a little irritated at the girl currently gaping like a goldfish at her. "Well, we'll just have to go and ask Numbuh 1, won't we?"

"If it clears things up, I think it's best." Fanny shook her head and scratched it in confusion as the two girls made their way to the communication room. Abby couldn't possibly think that she was in two places in once?

Abby pushed the door opened, and gasped. Fanny looked over her shoulder and moved Abby aside to reach Nigel.

He was sprawled upon the floor; his sunglasses' lenses were shattered, his clothes torn. Judging the position he was in, he was attacked from behind and then thrown to the floor. The filing cabinets had been massacred, the 2x4 computers smashed to smithereens. Abby came over and picked Nigel's torso up gently, and he came to moments later.

"Numbuh 1, what happened here?" Abby asked quietly.

"They came…Numbuh 2's new invention gone…She attacked me…" He groaned, attempting to sit up alone.

"Wait, who came?" Abby got desperate, and it seemed Fanny was too, as she excavated her mustard gun from her yellow satchel bag.

"C-Chad and Cree…and…" He looked in nervousness. "Numbuh 4 was right…"

"Now you're not making sense. Numbuh 4 was right about what?"

"We have a traitor living right our noses." He pointed in desperation…right at Fanny. "And while Chad and Cree stole the blueprints, she attacked me!"

Both Abby and Fanny froze. Abby felt a sharp pain in her chest, and Fanny kept shaking her head.

"Numbuh 1, how could've attacked you? I wasn't even here…" She stammered.

"Yes you were. You were with Numbuh 5 and I came and got you personally." He growled. "You've been working for them the whole time, weren't you Fanny? Gee, imagine what Numbuh 362 will think of you now."

"I don't believe what I'm hearing." Her voice was high, as if she was…upset. "You're accusing me of being untrue to you? Why would I want that jerkface's work anyway?"

"Maybe you should answer that one." Nigel's calm brown eyes now showed pure disgust, and pierced the red head's green ones.

"Hold up, this isn't right." Abby finally stepped in, standing a little bit away from them. "You say she beat you, she says she was at a house down the road, it doesn't make any sense. Unless…" Abby turned around for a moment, then turned back and pointed a finger at Nigel, which she scanned over to Fanny. "One of you is lying."

Fanny placed her gun back in her bag and looked pleadingly at Abby. "You honestly think your best friend or the girl that…I would lie to you?"

"Numbuh 86…" Nigel began, but Fanny stopped him instantly.

"It's ok Numbuh 1, I agree that it's best if I just leave." She held her chin up high, though she felt her heart snap in two. Her mask of confidence broke when a hand stopped her. She looked up to see a pair of amber eyes staring at her in sadness, and felt her shattered organ begin to melt.

"We…we confessed to each other, don't you remember?" The girl's lip trembled, her voice a mere whisper.

"No Abigail." Fanny felt tears forming. "You confessed your love to an imposter. And now, I must leave. I'm causing too much trouble for everyone staying here, and there's some unsettled business I need to take care of." She shook the other girl off. "Goodbye Abigail."

Abby felt her arm hang loosely by her side, as the one she loved walked out on her. And by the sounds of it, the one that walked out on her before. The one that didn't love her back.

Fanny felt the tears pour out as she swung down the tree branches. As to where she would go she had no idea, but she'd find somewhere if she just let her feet do the guiding. She had failed 362, her comrades, the fate of kids worldwide…but worst of all, she had failed the one she loved. The one who confessed their feelings for her to an imposter. The one she had just walked out on without even telling her how she felt back. She loved Abby so bad it killed her sometimes; she'd even cry herself to sleep about it. But now she had gone and messed everything up. She had that opportunity to lock this imposter, but she didn't for some reason. She just couldn't bring herself to do it, it was too upsetting. But now it didn't seem so upsetting. She was angry about it; angry that they took away what should've been said to her, would should've been done…

She wiped away the tears as her shoes angrily pounded the pavement. She was so deep in thought, she hadn't realized how long she'd been walking for, or how far she had reached. She looked up to see a house draped in Kids Next Door emergency tarps; the house she had been at moments before the argument.

A rustle was heard, and the hairs on Fanny's neck stood on end. She looked around nervously, as if waiting for something to jump out and attack. Her instincts were correct. In the corner of her left eye, a black streak shot out to land on her, but Fanny was smarter and more prepared than her stalker had intended. In one swift movement, Fanny kicked her leg out and caught the stalker square in the chest he was flown back, and a tuft of blonde hair protruded from his helmet.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't former 274." She scoffed. "I didn't think following little girls down the street was your kind of thing. I expected them to hang off you now."

"Stupid girl, I knew you'd attack me back." He grinned, and hands flung around her mouth and body from behind. She struggled, but the grip was too overpowering. The other figure's helmet folded back, and ebony curls fell down onto mocha coloured skin.

Cree Lincoln smirked evilly. "Aww sweety, not as smart as you think."

Fanny's eyebrows narrowed, and in an instant she bit down on Cree's palm. The teenager yelped in pain and let go of their target to hold her wound, which had a tiny bit of blood trickling out of it. Fanny ran back toward the tree house. She had to make it and warn the others about the attackers. Her toe caught a crevice in the path, and took a topple forward. She got up to her knees, and went to run again, but was pushed down again. Chad's evil grin was next to her cheek, and his whole body was holding hers down.

"Sorry missy, but you're not going anywhere."