Chapter 10.5: Trust me

Isaac found himself in a dimly lit, grey padded room, no windows or doors to be seen. The only things within it were a bed, and a television set hooked up to a PlayStation 3. He sat on the edge of the bed with a dual-shock 3 in his hands as he tapped away at the buttons, dispatching the goons and fodder so he could progress to the next area. Suddenly a door on the wall furthest from the bed revealed itself, startling him.

"Gah! Dammit…" he muttered.

A tall figure entered through the doorway, though the light entering into his dark cell made it hard for him to make it out. As the door closed behind it, Isaac could see the figure was Blossom, the tall, red-headed Powerpuff, garbed in her usual science-coat. She was right on time in accordance with the visit schedule she promised him.

"Hey Isaac!" she greeted.

"Hi." He replied flatly.

She sat next to him and noticed he was having trouble holding the controller and getting frustrated, then brought her attention to the screen.

"What game is this?" she asked.

"Godhand"

"Hmm. Is it fun?"

"Yeah, I like how you can punch guys really hard and send them flying."

"Err...Cool!"

She noticed his right hand clumsily gripping the controller, his fingers slipping over the buttons and thumb sticks, pressing the buttons too hard or not hard enough.

"How's the new hand?" she asked.

"It's weird" he replied, "After Sarge...I mean, my father cut it off, I could still feel it for a while. Now that it's back, I can't really feel it at all."

She rubbed his back and assured him with a smile "The feeling will come back."

She watched him play for a few minutes before breaking the silence with "So, I've got good news and more good news!"

Giving Blossom a brief look, Isaac said "Yeah?".

"So, the court deemed your father an unfit caretaker, so it isn't his job to look after you anymore."

Isaac paused the game, looked right into her eyes and asked "Really?! Then…who's going to look after me now?".

Smiling, she said, "Well your father didn't have a next of kin, so I put my name down to adopt you."

A smile formed on Isaac's face, "W-what!?" he exclaimed, "Are you serious?!".

"And that's only good news number one!"

Wide-eyed, Isaac looked at the ground and muttered: "Blossom is my new Mom."

"Parental guardian!" she corrected him.

"Eheh, sorry." He said, blushing.

"Good news number two; your father has been relocated to work off-site, so you won't be seeing him anymore."

"Wait, so does that mean I can go out now?!" he asked happily.

Her smile faded, "…No, you'll have to stay in here for a little longer I'm afraid."

Confused, he asked, "But…but then…when? I wanna leave! I wanna get out of here!"

"I know Isaac, I know, but it's the rules."

He got up, visibly aggravated, "Then the rules are stupid!" he yelled.

The door flew open, revealing men with shock batons and animal control poles standing outside ready to storm the room and apprehend him if such a situation would arise. Blossom held her arm out, signaling them to back off.

As the door closed again, Isaac said "They hate me. They want to lock me away forever, don't they?"

She leaned forward and said "They don't hate you, Isaac, they're scared of you. Putting you in here is what makes them feel safe."

"Well, maybe they're right." He replied, "Maybe I deserve this."

She sighed, then said "Isaac, I've spoken with the doctors. They said you've been having those dreams again."

He didn't reply, looking blankly at the floor.

"What was it this time?"

"It…it was about the same as the other ones."

She could tell he was trying to avoid the subject "Maybe if you talk about it, it'll be easier for you."

"Okay…" he hesitated, but continued, "There was a little girl. She was pulling on her mom's arm, yelling out to her, even though she was…" he paused, deciding not elaborate, "The girl was looking right at me, and when I got closer, she screamed louder and looked more scared. And that's it."

She got up, "Isaac…" knelt in front of him then placed her hand on his shoulder, "That wasn't you."

"You say that, but it doesn't feel that way."

"It's true though. I know you're not capable of something like that."

"But I did do it!" he replied, knocking her hand away, "I was trained to kill! I've been killing things my whole life! I looked into the eyes of a Lycan as I cut its heart out with a silver dagger! I am capable!"

"Listen to me Isaac!" she interjected, "You feel guilty because you would never knowingly hurt someone. You have a heart!"

His eyes welled up, "Then…Then what's wrong with me?! If I'm so good, then why am I in here?!".

"Isaac, I've also made mistakes in the past, due to not understanding my powers, mistakes I wish I could take back. Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I decided to make up for those mistakes by doing good, on the terms of the people I hurt."

He was taken back by her confession. He never thought Blossom would be one to have regrets. He believed she was perfect, flawless, he wanted to be just like her. As it turns out, he was more like her in ways he didn't want to admit.

"Then…how can I make up for it, when I'm stuck in here?"

"You won't be for long. Trust me." She said, wiping the tears from his cheek, "You'll be out of here in no time."