Author's Notes: Welcome to another chapter of "Mr. Big". I'm enjoying writing this story so far, and I enjoy the different tones this particular fic is allowing me to work with. Drama, comedy, mystery, and character building. It's all just so much fun! This chapter introduces Femme Fatale to the story, and I have to say she is difficult to write yet fun to write as well. She's basically what would happen if the concept of butthurt became a person and started committing crimes. LOL! Anyway, enough of me rambling. Thank you to those who are reading this story, and I hope you enjoy this chapter of the story :)

Chapter 2

No One Sees Mr. Big

Buttercup and Butch were toweling off sweat from their bruised sore bodies after another successful day of protecting their title as Monster Island's power couple. After they were reasonably clean they were just going to chill by playing a video game together and then eating whatever snacks were left in the fridge.

"Man, did you see that tiny punk that tried to take me down?" Butch asked excitedly as he roughed up the towel around his black spiky hair, "He really thought those shooting spikes were going to stop me? What a load!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Buttercup groused playfully at her boyfriend, "You hear anything from your bothers lately? The four of us were supposed to go to the go kart track this weekend."

"Why even bother inviting them?" Butch scoffed, "Brick just bosses everyone around and Boomer crashes into everything. At least if I ram my kart into yours you won't cry like Boomer does."

"Hah, if anyone's gonna cry it's gonna be you," Buttercup taunted him.

Butch was about to fire off a retort, but before he could Buttercup's cell phone started ringing. She looked at the caller ID and decided to answer it, so Butch assumed it was Buttercup's stupid sisters or stuck-up father.

"Hello? Oh, hey Blossom," Buttercup greeted her mechanically, too tired from the day for anything else, "Yeah? ... What!?"

"What?" Butch exclaimed curiously.

"Well where was Bubbles?" Buttercup asked accusingly, "Seriously? But how did that happen so fast?"

"What happened?" Butch demanded to know.

"Yeah, I guess I'd better fly over there," Buttercup conceded, "Is the professor okay?... Good. Wait, what was stolen from Bubbles?... Octi? Who would steal an old stuffed octopus?... Yeah, I know! ... Look, I get it, okay? I already said I'd be over there soon! ... Well of course I am! ... Why are you so judgmental, Blossom? Butch is a nice guy once you get to know him- ... Look, just hang on, okay? We can handle it. We're the Powerpuff Girls. Nothing can stop us! ... Okay, buh-bye."

"Well?" Butch asked impatiently, "What the heck did she say?!"

"Blossom said their house was robbed," Buttercup replied, "She and Bubbles were gone for a few minutes, and someone broke in and wrecked everything. The professor is fine, but apparently there's some stupid mob boss targeting the family. I gotta go help Blossom handle this, and if you don't feel like cooking your own dinner tonight you'll come with me."

"You don't cook my dinner!" Butch pointed out, "We eat takeout like civilized people!"

"Just get your wallet and come on," Buttercup ordered.

Butch scowled at his bossy girlfriend, but complied with her demands like he always did. The two of them were always bossing each other around and trying to figure out who the dominant half of their relationship was. It always seemed to be whoever had the more passionate case to argue, and today it seemed Buttercup had won.

The light flipped on at the dusty downtown penthouse, illuminating a home that had been left dormant for quite a long time. Femme Fatale had been in prison for fifteen years after a string of bank robberies had gone wrong, and it felt strange to actually step foot in her own home again.

Even though nothing had been touched there were still many things in decay. The colors head faded on her couch and her chairs, there was a layer of dust on everything, and when she went to turn on her old boxy TV it didn't work anymore. Despite how depressing the setting was, Femme Fatale knew she was one of the lucky ones. Many prisoners left the big house with no money, no home, and no job prospects. At least her penthouse was one that she owned outright and therefore was a place she could rest her head at night.

Femme Fatale wasn't just going to rot in her shrine to the past and fade into obscurity though. She had learned a lot from her time locked away, and she felt confident enough to try her hand at villainy again. She would have to work her way up to be sure, but soon she would be ready to showcase herself again and finally defeat those brats that had stolen her freedom, the Powerpuff Girls!

But first, she needed money. Since she was a former super villain (in her opinion) she decided she should look for some illegal enterprise to work for. She went on the website townsvillains,edu and started looking for job postings from the various crime organizations in Townsville.

"Hm, let's see..." Femme Fatale muttered to herself as she scrolled on her clunky old computer, "Hitman wanted. Argh! Seriously? Hit man? As if a woman isn't good enough for the job? That's it! This ad is getting such an angry comment..."

This went on for several minutes as each new post enraged the feminist villain. The posts went along the lines of 'Delivery Boy Wanted', 'Mob Boss Seeks Hitman', 'Right Hand Man Wanted', 'Henchman wanted', and so on. Femme Fatale refused to even answer any of these ads because of the semantics used. A normal villain would know not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but Femme Fatale was anything but normal. She would rather not work at all than work for someone who thought a man could do her job better than her.

Finally, after scrolling through the villain site for 15 minutes, she found a post she liked. 'Wanted: Someone to kill the Powerpuff Girls. Must be smart, be able to keep a secret, and bring own weapons. Will pay big $$$. Willing to haggle. Contact the Saga Cartel at 555-555-5543.'

"Hm, well at least somebody uses gender neutral terms around here," Femme Fatale said approvingly, "Hm, I haven't heard of the Saga Cartel though. Must be a new crime ring. I'll just bet a man runs it. Female villainy is at an all-time low. Well, looks like I'll just have to shatter that glass ceiling. Hahahaha!"

Femme Fatale did her most impressive evil laugh even though no one was there to hear it. She then went to the closet and searched for one of her costumes that hadn't been eaten by moths. She managed to find one, and then found her ankh shaped laser gun. Femme Fatale was back in business, and killing the Powerpuff Girls would be the best way to get started in super villainy once again.

When Buttercup and Butch arrived at the Utonium residence Blossom was quick to explain the situation. Buttercup was enraged that someone would just come in and destroy their home, while Butch was mostly just impressed that someone had the nerve to steal the couch. He became less impressed however when he was informed that the fridge was stolen too.

"What? You mean there's no food to eat in this dump?" Butch asked heatedly, "Then what am I even doing here!?"

"Helping us find these guys so we can take 'em to jail, duh!" Buttercup rudely replied.

"But you didn't even hand me dinner!" Butch argued, "I'm not beating up bad guys on an empty stomach. I'm gonna get a pizza. You losers want anything?"

"I'm not dignifying that with a response," Blossom replied haughtily.

"Could you bring back a pineapple pizza?" Bubbles asked, not too proud to accept food from the guy who called her a loser.

"Pineapple? Yuck! Gross! Buttercup, you're related to these weirdos how?" Butch asked after sticking out his tongue.

"I could go get the pizza," Professor offered.

"No way! You'll come back with only the pineapple just to spite me," Butch accused, "I'm goin' to get dinner. Don't leave without me."

With those words Butch flew off, and Bubbles breathed a sigh of relief that he was gone. Even after all this time the Rowdyruff Boys still freaked her out. Bubbles didn't know if she could avoid a panic attack for as long as it would take to solve the case with Butch around.

"Yeesh! Buttercup, why do you even date that guy?" Blossom asked caustically, "He's a moron and a creep."

"Yeah, but he gets me," Buttercup replied without shame, "Look Blossom, you might be okay with dating normies, but I need more than that. I need excitement, I need power, I need someone who doesn't just ask me how my day was, but jumps in there and fights alongside me. Butch may not be perfect, but he and I do things for each other that no one else can. He understands me in ways no other guy could."

"But he's mean," Bubbles timidly mentioned.

"So? I'm mean," Buttercup countered.

"Not like him," Bubbles insisted, "Butch doesn't care who he hurts. You at least only attack bad guys."

"So?" Buttercup replied defensively with her arms crossed.

"Look girls, this conversation is getting us nowhere," Blossom reasoned, "We still need to figure out how to find Mr. Big."

"Mr. Big? Wasn't that a name from an episode of King of The Hill?" Buttercup asked obliviously.

"No Buttercup, Mr. Big is the boss of the Saga Cartel," Blossom explained, "He's the one who's trying to get to us, so we have to find him first."

"Oh. Okay," Buttercup nodded in understanding, "Well then that's easy. Just find some of his goons and beat 'em up until they tell us where the big guy is."

"Hm, a direct approach huh? That might actually work," Blossom pondered, "Okay Buttercup. We'll try your way first. When Butch gets back the four of us will split up and go after different goons we know to work with Mr. Big. I'll start with Patches Malone in Townsville Prison. Buttercup, you go after Louey The Knife who's currently on parole and lives in the Sleep Eazy Motel. Bubbles, you talk to Harriet Rouge who works the neon sign district. Butch can talk to Harry Fingers who works at a golf course."

"Do I have to do this?" Bubbles asked nervously, "I haven't fought crime in so long, I don't know if I remember how. Besides, what if someone gets hurt?"

"Harriet Rouge is a nonviolent offender. You shouldn't have any trouble with this one," Blossom assured her, "Just talk to her and see what she knows about Mr. Big. That's all you have to do, okay?"

"Well...okay," Bubbles reluctantly replied.

Back in the old days Buttercup would've made a snide remark about Bubbles being a baby. She was old enough and mature enough now though that she understood her sister's situation. Bubbles didn't do well in normal settings, let alone anything that involved crime fighting. Buttercup and Blossom both knew that Bubbles would be as much of a liability as Butch, though for very different reasons. One didn't know how to throw a punch anymore, and the other didn't know when to stop.

Femme Fatale had called the number given for the Saga Cartel and was surprised to find out her potential employer was ready to meet with her that very day. She wasn't going to mess this up. She was going to get the job, destroy the Powerpuff Girls, and then use her money to fund her own competing criminal empire that would engulf any other entity that stood in its way.

She followed the instructions to the meeting point precisely, and felt her heart beating fast in her chest when she saw it was a gated community. She didn't know much about her employer, but she did know one thing that made her grind her teeth with rage: his name was Mr. Big. She hated it when she was right, but she was. The Saga Cartel was male dominated, just like everything else! Well, if she had her way someday that would change...

She told the gatekeeper the address and waited to be let inside. It didn't help that she had taken a bus to get there and was tired from walking up the driveway to the stupid gate. Perhaps heeled boots was the wrong thing to wear with her costume. She would make a note of that for future design improvements.

When the gatekeeper let her in she did her best to stride confidently into the neighborhood. The mansion where Mr. Big lived was huge, and Femme Fatale recognized the house next door as belonging to the Morebucks family. Well, she wasn't going to let this opulent show of money and power intimidate her. That was exactly what he would want.

She knocked on the door, and a tiny slit in the door slid back to reveal a pair of eyes looking straight at her.

"Who are you?" A gruff voice asked suspiciously.

"Femme Fatale. I'm here to see Mr. Big about his ad."

"No one talks to Mr. Big," The man replied condescendingly but then opened the door for her, revealing himself to be a short man in a black trench coat and hat, "The name's Moose. I'm Mr. Big's right hand man, and from now on you'll be dealing with me."

"Really?" Femme Fatale asked, unimpressed, "And why is Mr. Big hiding behind you, Moose? Is the big man himself afraid of his own assassins? Hah! I'm not surprised."

"Mr. Big is too important to deal with some wannabe with a flare gun," Moose scoffed, "This hit is for the Powerpuff Girls, not the Girl Scouts."

"Are you saying because I'm a woman that I'm not good enough to be an assassin?" Femme Fatale barked irritably.

"Lady, it's the Powerpuffs. I know they ain't what they used to be, but they're still more powerful than you," Moose replied with a patronizing smile, "I'm sure you think you got a good gimmick, but a good gimmick ain't enough to take down the 'Puffs. The boss is the strongest man I ever met, and even he can't take down the Powerpuffs by brute force. It's gonna take brains, and it's gonna take guts. You think you got what it takes, Girl Scout?"

"It's Femme Fatale!" She shouted at the annoying little man, "And I can take on anything you throw at me! Here, let me show you."

With those words Femme Fatale holstered her gun and grabbed Moose before he even knew what hit him. She spun him around above her head and then threw him against the wall! When he went to pull a pistol out of his coat, he found that she already had her ankh gun pointed straight at his face!

"So, how much am I getting paid?" Femme Fatale purred smugly.

"How does three million sound?" Moose gulped as he eyed the gun still close to his face.

"I want it all in Susan B Anthony and Sacajewea dollars," Femme Fatale demanded.

"I'll s-speak to the b-boss about it," Moose stammered.

"Good. Then this meeting is over," Femme Fatale replied as she withdrew her gun, "Tell Mr. Big he has my number, and I expect half of the payment before I begin. You little boys can give me the rest when the job is done."

"Whoa, hey, wait a minute! You expect 1.5 million in lady coins!?" Moose asked incredulously, "How are we supposed to get all that so quickly?"

"That's your problem," Femme Fatale replied nonchalantly, "Just do it. I might not be able to touch Mr. Big, but I can certainly get to you."

With that cryptic threat hanging in the air Femme Fatale walked off feeling like she had proved her point. Moose tugged at his collar and dusted off his trench coat. He then pulled out his smartwatch and called his boss.

"Hey, Mr. Big. It's Moose. Your new assassin just left. She's confident, but I'm not sure if we should hire her, sir."

"Why not?" Mr. Big asked on the other side of the line.

"She wants 3 million dollars and 1.5 million upfront."

"So? What's the problem?"

"She wants it all in Susan B Anthony and Sacajewea coins," Moose explained.

"How much are those worth?" Mr. Big asked.

"A dollar each, but that ain't the point. Those coins are hard to find, and she wants over a million of them!"

"Do it."

"What? But boss-!"

"Mr. Big said do it!" Mr. Big shouted, "If this one gets the Powerpuff Girls, then it's worth every penny. If she fails, then Fluffy gets to eat her. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Moose replied with a sinister smile, pretty sure Femme Fatale was going to go the 'Fluffy' route, "I'll get the boys to start getting withdrawals from the banks for our new Girl Scout. Heh heh heh heh."

Mr. Big started laughing along with Moose from his end of the line; one thinking of the demise of the Powerpuff Girls and the other thinking about Femme Fatale screaming from inside Fluffy's enclosure.

Blossom was face to face with Patches Malone, the only thing separating them being a thick wall of glass and a telephone line.

"You're my visitor, huh?" Patches said in disappointment, "I got my cavity searched for this?"

"Patches, I'm working on a very important case, and you could be the difference between justice and the death of who knows how many innocent people," Blossom explained, hoping to appeal to his humanity.

"So the Powerpuff is a detective now?" Patches asked mockingly, "Alright, I'll bite. Maybe you can help me cut a deal with the prosecution in my upcoming trial for drug trafficking. What do you wanna know?"

"I need any information you can give me on Mr. Big," Blossom stated.

"My boss? No way, kid!" Patches exclaimed as he scooted a little further back from the screen, "Nobody rats out Mr. Big, and nobody outside the gang gets to see him. The Saga Cartel is very particular like that, and if I don't wanna get shanked from either a rival crime family or my own, then I gotta keep my mouth shut."

"Patches, this is personal for me," Blossom told him, "My father is in mortal danger, as is anyone who happens to be close to me. Mr. Big wants me to stop fighting crime, and my sisters could end up in the crossfire. I'm willing to work toward getting you a good deal, but you need to work with me."

"I don't need to do nothin'," Patches growled, "Nobody sees Mr. Big. Nobody!"

Blossom realized she wasn't going to get anywhere with Patches Malone, so she left him be. She just hoped that the others were having better luck than she was.

...

"Where is he, ya punk!?" Butch screamed before landing another punch on Harry Fingers, much to the horror of the golfers he was caddying for.

"I told you I don't know!" Harry screamed pleadingly, "I never directly saw Mr. Big! I just ran errands for the gang! I was a gofer, nothing more!"

"Too bad," Butch smirked maliciously.

Butch then punched Harry Fingers for all he was worth and then threw him on the ground! The golfers ran away from the psychotic Rowdyruff, and Harry tried to crawl away. Butch grabbed him by the leg and dragged him back, and Harry clawed at the immaculate grass and dirt underneath in an effort to avoid the wrath of the green eyed superhuman.

"Now, I'm gonna ask you again, and you're gonna answer me!" Butch screamed in Harry's ear, "Where's Mr. Big?"

Harry felt cornered. If he told Butch about Mr. Big it might get him out of this beating, but he would just be beaten to death anyway once the cartel found out he had betrayed them. Not to mention he heard Mr. Big's weapon of choice was his own bare hands. Harry did not feel like getting beaten or strangled to death, but with Butch holding him in the air like this he didn't have much choice.

"I won't die a rat!" Harry finally shouted at Butch, "I'm sorry, but I can't talk!"

"Your loss," Butch replied easily as he threw Harry up in the air.

Harry screamed as he fell, but was then caught by Butch at the last second. Butch then punched him again in the gut, and Harry was sure this was the end, but then an authoritive yet feminine voice said "Put the stooge down, Butch!"

"Huh? I don't have to listen to you!" Butch argued with Harry's current hero, Blossom the Powerpuff Girl.

"Butch, you're going to kill him if you aren't careful," Blossom warned, "Beating up the bad guys is part of being a superhero, but killing them isn't. Just let him go. He did his time."

"But he didn't say anything useful!" Butch complained.

"Neither did my guy," Blossom told him, "Hopefully Buttercup and Bubbles are having better luck than we are."

...

Meanwhile, in the neon sign district, Bubbles had finally located Harriet Rouge. It wasn't easy, as there were many floozies working the street that evening, but Bubbles had finally found the right one in the form of an aging redhead with a smoker's cough and saggy skin.

"So, um, you're Harriet, huh?" Bubbles said nervously as she kicked at a pebble with her foot.

"Yeah, whaddya need kid?" Harriet asked haggardly, "In case you haven't noticed, I've got a full night ahead of me."

"Well, I was wondering what you could tell me about Mr. Big, ma'am," Bubbles asked as politely as she could manage, "I really need to find him."

"Good luck," Harriet snorted sarcastically, "I never met him personally. I went out with Moose McGregor for a while. He's Mr. Big's proxy. Never met him in the same building twice. The Saga Cartel likes the element of surprise. Moose did tell me a few things about Mr. Big though, but I'm not sure how much is true."

"Anything would be helpful, ma'am," Bubbles replied humbly.

"Well, Moose said Mr. Big likes to eat, a lot," Harriet chuckled, "They don't call him Mr. Big just for his power. Apparently he's some kind of giant, and he instills loyalty in his men by paying them well and cultivating a fun atmosphere at work. House parties, vacations, you name it and he's done it. Of course for every carrot there's a stick, and I hear Mr. Big can snap a man's spine with one hand."

Harriet then started coughing and hacking for such a long time that Bubbles began to wonder if she was okay. After a minute though Harriet managed to take a few breaths and readjust her tight fitting red dress.

"What can I say kid? It's a drug cartel. There's hundreds of them," Harriet said with a careless wave of her cigarette, "You'll be lucky to find anyone willing to talk to you about Mr. Big. The ones that aren't afraid of him simply like him too much. Not to mention bringing him down would call attention to their own bad actions. Why do you wanna know, anyway?"

"Because his goons attacked our house," Bubbles explained, "The Saga Cartel wants to kill us, and they might hurt our professor."

"I'm sorry to hear that, sweetie," Harriet replied sympathetically, "I know you were a Powerpuff Girl once, and you did a lot for this town. Even criminals should know what a horrible place Townsville would be without you. I hope you find Mr Big and take him down a few notches. I gotta go now. I see a regular customer pulling up."

Bubbles watched as the old woman leaned into a car window and then took off so she wouldn't accidentally eavesdrop on the conversation. Just as she was flying away she ran into Buttercup, who had just come back from the Sleep Eazy Motel.

"Did you find out anything, Bubbles?" Buttercup asked.

"I found out Mr. Big is a giant and he likes to throw parties," Bubbles told her sister, "What did you find?"

"You don't wanna know," Buttercup shuddered as she recalled what Louey The Knife had been doing in that room with Ms. Haystack Festival, "I questioned Louey, but he wouldn't talk. He said no one sees Mr. Big and I should just quit now while I'm ahead. Don't these idiots remember who I am? I'm Buttercup, the toughest fighter of the Powerpuff Girls!"

"Harriet remembered me," Bubbles commented, "I wish she didn't though. It makes me feel like a has-been."

"There's nothing wrong with retiring," Buttercup tried to reassure Bubbles, "You got in too deep, and you had to take a break. It happens to a lot of people. I'd be upset too if people kept saying I failed when I saved the day."

"It wasn't that," Bubbles replied ruefully, "I let people die on my watch. I mean, I know they were the bad guys, but it wasn't like they were the ultimate evil or anything. They were just punks that only had one brain to share between five of them. I tried to save the day like I always did, and it got them killed," Bubbles then sighed and said, "After this is over, I need to talk to Dr. Needo as soon as possible."