Time
Part 3: Agonizing Deception
Chapter 8
"I don't think I'm ready for this," Blossom whimpered. It had been two months after Vincent's death, and everyone was still feeling the sting. Even the Ruffs. Blossom had done nothing but cry herself to sleep for the past eight weeks, neglecting to pick herself up to go to the Lab for work. Her boss had to call her up several times to give her a monotone speech about how he's sorry for her loss, but she needs to still put in the effort for the good of the pink Powerpuff tuned him out after the first two times. Now, in the end of May, it was finally time for the funeral. Getting the family together pushed the memorial back several times. Some of Vincent's family was on the other side of the world. Most of the time it was Vincent's own parents who pushed it back. Neither one of them wanted to truly believe that they had to plan a service for their son. Blossom couldn't blame them. She didn't feel ready at all.
Buttercup sighed behind her sister and placed her hands on Blossom's shoulders after she zipped the dress up.
"You'll be fine, Bloss. Me and Bubbles will be right there with you." Buttercup moved away, placing a hand on her six months pregnant belly. She rubbed it gently, growing into the idea of being a mother soon. Even though it was a time of great tragedy, she couldn't help but be excited for the baby's birthday. During her four month checkup session, she and Butch decided not to know the baby's sex until it was born. The anticipation was killing her. She even had a few names picked out.
Blossom sighed deeply before moving from her mirror to her bed.
"I just… I miss him so much. He… He didn't deserve what Brick did to him. Ugh, I should've called the cops on him..." Blossom hissed out the Rowdyruff's name like it was poison in her system.
Buttercup sighed with a roll of her eyes. She knew Brick didn't mean to bring that kind of harm to her sister's boyfriend, and Bubbles knew it, too. During their time together, when talking about the fiasco that happened in the hospital, Bubbles divulged that she had a feeling that something or someone was trying to tear them all apart. Buttercup tried to get her blonde sister to tell her who or what, but Bubbles wouldn't budge.
Buttercup slightly waddled over to Blossom's bed and sat down carefully next to her. Blossom noticed her sister's struggle and frowned.
"You don't have to go, you know. You should stay here, order food or something." Buttercup shook her head.
"No, I'm okay. Why wouldn't I go to the funeral? Vincent was like family. Plus, I don't really want to be alone right now." Blossom scoffed.
"Damn him for getting you pregnant. That pig."
That was another thing Buttercup hated about the whole situation. Blossom took a newfound hatred for Brick's brothers. Every time either of them would bring Butch or Boomer up, Blossom couldn't help herself but to take the piss out of them both. Buttercup and Bubbles got sick of it a month and a half ago, but Blossom wouldn't stop. It was as if talking bad about them was some kind of drug for her.
"That baby is going to be messed up. Sharing DNA with someone like that would mess anyone up."
Buttercup shot up from her spot on the bed and glared at her sister.
"Don't you dare bring my child into this! Don't you dare. Butch has done nothing yet to make me think of him being less than capable of taking care of this baby. You leave both of them alone. Bubbles and I are sick of this whole 'bashing them just to bash them' attitude you've developed! Just drop it!" Blossom didn't look the least bit afraid of her sister's yelling. She just had the same deadpan look on her face.
"Yeah, whatever." Blossom glanced up at the clock. "We should go. Everyone should be there by now." She grabbed her keys from her desk and led the way into the hallway down the stairs. Once they put on their jackets and shoes, the two exited the house and climbed into Blossom's car. Blossom turned out of her parking spot and sped down the street to the funeral home.
"I can't believe we weren't invited. I don't even understand how this happened!" Rachel wiped at her puffy red eyes with a clump of tissues in her small hands. "Brick, are you sure it was an accident?"
Brick sat on the couch next to Rachel's chair with his arms on his knees, bent over. Boomer and Butch sat next to him with melancholy strewn all over their faces. Brick glanced up in shock.
"Of course it was, Rachel! How could you think it wasn't? I'm not that type of person anymore. I'm military for fuck's sake!" Rachel sniffed once more, realizing her mistake. She reached out a hand and gripped her son's.
"I know, I know. I'm sorry, Brick. I shouldn't doubt you. I've learned firsthand how much you've changed." Brick sighed and nodded gripping her hand back gently. Butch groaned and placed his head in his hands.
"Yeah well, Leader Girl won't even let me near my pregnant girlfriend because of this. When I tried, she flipped out at me and told me to 'leave her sister alone, or I would be sorry' or something like that. Now, we have to sneak around like we're teenagers again. It's awful." Boomer grunted in agreement.
"I got the same treatment when I saw Bubbles and her at the mall the other day. She told me to go fuck myself and to leave her little sister alone. And we just started dating again… Bubbles even told me that we should stop seeing each other for the time being." He looked to Butch. "At least you get to sneak around with Buttercup. I get jack shit." Rachel scoffed and pulled her hand away from Brick.
"I hope you two aren't blaming your brother for this." Butch leaned back and frowned down at his red headed brother.
"If it wasn't for him none of this would've happened…" Rachel shot out of her chair, pointing an accusing finger at Butch.
"You stop that! Right now! This was not Brick's fault, okay? It was an accident. Even though he screwed up, you two should still be there for him!" The two men crossed their arms over their chests, glancing down at the floor. Rachel sniffed once more. "Well, you are all allowed to stay here for the night. It's not like your rooms have gone anywhere." She glanced over to the clock and saw the time flash 6:45. "I'll make us some dinner." Rachel moved from the living room to the kitchen, leaving her brooding sons to themselves. There was a long moment of silence before Boomer decided to speak up.
"It's not your fault, Brick. I'm sorry, I'm just upset. I'll get over it." Brick sighed.
"I just… don't understand what happened. I wasn't even holding him hard enough to snap his neck!" He shook his head. "I'm being framed. I don't know by who or by what, but I did not do this. I couldn't have." Butch and Boomer stared down at their brother before looking at each other. Brick leaned back on the couch and grabbed the remote from the side table. He clicked on the TV, and the news popped up on screen. The woman on the screen shuffled her papers before looking to the camera, folding her hands in front of her.
"In other news, it has been reported that a fire, seemingly spontaneous, has sparked up at the historical Townsville Funeral Home. It is known that The Powerpuff Girls, along with some close friends and family, were at the scene before the fire began to burn the whole place down. The girls quickly sprung into action and successfully evacuated the premises . But trying to put out the raging fire was no use. More damage came to the funeral home than the girls anticipated. The person that they were holding the memorial for was burnt away with the rest of the building. What is even stranger is that is a large crack was seen near the graveyard deep within the ground. Here is Jeremy Adder on the scene." The screen switched over to a lanky man with black rimmed glasses, holding up a microphone. "Jeremy, can you tell us what is going on? What happened to spark the fire?"
"As of right now, no one really seems to know. Um, The Powerpuff Girls had to act pretty fast since some of the family of the deceased said that at one moment there was no sign of fire, and the next the whole building was ablaze. Um, the fire department came not too long after the girls began the evacuation process to get their family and friends as far away as possible. " The newswoman nodded her head before asking more questions.
"It is reported that there is a large crack in the ground near the graveyard. Can you tell us what that is all about, or what may have caused it?" Jeremy held up the microphone once more.
"Uh, as of right now, there is no explanation for the large gap in the ground. There wasn't one before the funeral started, but after the fire started it was seen by the others. It's pretty deep, and no one knows how far down it goes, but as you can see behind me, the TVPD are trying to figure out what caused it and are blocking it off just in case a civilian gets too curious." The newswoman nodded once more and thanked Jeremy for the report. Jeremy thanked her, and the screen returned back to its normal state. The boys stared in astonishment at the screen. Brick looked to his brothers wide-eyed.
"W-what the hell was that?" Boomer finally blinked and gulped harshly.
"Why would someone burn down the funeral home? Did they know the girls would be there?" he asked. Butch frowned.
"No, that wasn't a normal fire. Fires don't just spontaneously burn buildings to the ground like that. I have to call Buttercup, see what's going on. They might still be there." Butch brought out his phone and opened his contacts, tapping on his girlfriend's name. He jumped up from the couch and jogged up the stairs to his room. He closed the door behind him and sat on the edge of his bed with his phone to his ear. After the third ring, Buttercup's voice could finally be heard.
"Butch," she spoke, her voice was slightly shaky.
"Kitten, what's going on? Are you okay? We saw what happened on the news." Buttercup sighed, sniffling a bit.
"I-I don't know! One minute, we were sitting in the funeral home listening to people pay their respects, and the next the fire just started. Luckily, we got everyone out just in time before the building collapsed. The police are trying to figure out what's going on in that crack in the ground, but I just… Butch, I could barely do anything! I was so scared. Is it selfish that I was thinking about the baby the whole time?" Butch placed his head in his hand.
"No, no, Kitten, it's not. I'm just as scared. Are you still there?"
"Yeah, we're still here. The police are questioning the others. After they're done, we can go." Butch rubbed a hand down his face, worrying about his girlfriend and unborn child.
"Do you want me to come and get you? I can bring you up here to Rachel's house?"
"Is that really a good idea? Blossom is right here, she might give you some trouble." Butch chuckled humorlessly.
"Humph, I'm not scared of Blossom. She can yell and scream at me all she wants, but she won't touch me if you're there." Buttercup giggled before answering.
"Okay, just come get me then." Butch stood up from his bed and turned to his bedroom door.
"I'll be there in a flash." He ended the call and clicked off his phone, placing it back in his pocket. He jogged back down the stairs and slipped on his sneakers. Rachel poked her head out from behind the kitchen wall and looked at him.
"Where are you off to?" Butch slipped on his jacket and grabbed his car keys.
"Buttercup wants to leave, so I'm bringing her up here with us." Rachel told him that is was fine and went back into the kitchen. Butch exited the family home and entered his truck, speeding down the road.
"Blossom, you have to calm down, okay? Just breathe." Buttercup and Bubbles were at their sister's side rubbing her back, trying to prevent the panic attack that Blossom was too close to having. Blossom and her sisters sat on three small stools that the police brought over once they saw Blossom breathing heavily. Buttercup was already shaking from her nerves at the sudden fire and fearing for her baby. She did not have time to comfort her sister. All of this stress wasn't good for the pregnant woman.
"Blossom!" The girls looked up and saw a soot covered Professor run up to them. He kneeled down in front of Blossom and gently grabbed her face. "It's okay, Blossom. Calm down for us, please?" Blossom stared into her father's eyes before bursting into tears. Buttercup and Bubbles let go of their sister's hands as Professor pulled his daughter into a loving hug. "Shh, it's alright, Blossom. Vincent… he's in a better place now. I know how important he was to you, but I'm sure he's happy wherever he is. He was a good boyfriend to you, but sometimes these unfair things just happen to good people." Blossom buried her face into her father's jacket collar and sobbed at his words. Vincent was such a good man. He was the last person to ever deserve this.
As the Professor was consoling the pink Powerpuff, Bubbles looked up at the other patrons. Behind the crowd, she noticed that Jessie was near a small table the firemen and women set out with small cups of water. He seemed to have a small smirk on his face as he sipped away at the ice cold liquid. Bubbles frowned before looking back at Blossom.
"I'll go get her some water." Buttercup and Professor nodded. Bubbles jumped up from her stool and walked over to the isolated table. She slowly walked up behind Jessie and crossed her arms over her chest. "I know you did this." Jessie gulped down the water in his mouth and spoke.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he answered, keeping his back turned to her. Bubbles rolled her eyes and huffed.
"Oh, stop with the bullshit! We both know that ever since you jumped back into the picture, weird things have been happening: the phone call, Vincent's weird mood, Blossom getting hit by him, Buttercup's stomach cramps, and finally the untimely death of Blossom's boyfriend and the fire. I know it's you. It's always been you. You've been nothing but trouble. Why you couldn't stay away from my boyfriend, I'll never know. Are you that desperate for attention?" Jessie whipped around to face her, his blue-hazel eyes struggling to hide away the swirling reddish-pink that was underneath.
"Shut up! I never 'stole' Boomer away from you. He came to me on his own. He actually liked me. And you know what? You're too smart for your own good. Yeah, I did it. I did all of it! It was me the whole time. But I'm not the only one to blame. You were never my friends. None of you really cared about me! Brickhead and Butchy-Boy bullied me almost all of the time in school, your sisters knew it was going on and did nothing, and you were so far on Boomer's dick that you couldn't see that maybe he just saw you as an easy fuck." Bubbles reared her hand back and swiped it across Jessie's cheek. Luckily, no one else saw their little tiff.
"How dare you! You don't have the right to speak to me this way! You are a vile and cruel person, and the others deserve to know what you really are. Especially Boomer." She turned on her heel and began to walk away, forgetting the water.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Jessie called after her in a sing-song tone. Bubbles stopped in her tracks and chuckled humorlessly before glancing back at him.
"Oh yeah? And why is that?" Jessie smirked and grabbed another cup from the table. He stood right in front of Bubbles, his smirk widening.
"Because, dearest Bubbles, if you even think about telling anyone at all," he grabbed her arm and forced her to look at her sisters. He leaned down to her ear and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I'll kill that baby…" Bubbles' smiled dropped from her face and her eyes began to water in worry.
"Y-you wouldn't… You wouldn't go that far…" Jessie chuckled darkly.
"Oh, but I would. Try to tell anyone and bye-bye little niece or nephew. Buttercup wouldn't know who was the cause of it. You'd have to live with that guilt for the rest of your life. And when you've settled down and have children of your own, I won't rest until you are reminded of what you did every. Single. Day." Bubbles shook her head-hard- trying to keep the awful images from her head.
"Jessie, no. Th-this isn't like you. Wherever you've been… it, it's done something to you…"
"Oh, so now you're trying to act like you know me and compromise? Huh, of course. You were always the weakest link." He lifted up the small cup of water in front of her. "Don't forget the water for Blossom." Bubbles slowly grabbed it and began to walk away, thinking about what Jessie proposed. She had to tell someone, anyone! But she couldn't risk her niece's or nephew's life. Damn him…
"Here's your water.' Bubbles handed the cup to a now calm Blossom. Blossom took it and stared up at her blonde sister.
"Are you alright? You look a little pale." Bubbles sighed and waved her off placing a small smile on her lips.
"Oh, I'm fine. I'm just trying to figure out… what caused this." Blossom sipped at her water with a nod. Suddenly, a truck pulled up behind the police line. The cops were about to tell the person to not park there, but they quickly realized who it was and let him pass.
"Buttercup!" Butch jogged towards his girlfriend and hugged her close once he reached her. Buttercup hugged him back and kissed his cheek.
"I'm okay, I'm okay." Blossom growled and jumped out of her seat.
"The hell are you doing here? Get out!" Buttercup pulled away and glared at her sister.
"Blossom, leave him alone! He's here for me. I told him to come and pick me up." Blossom reached out and pulled on Buttercup's arm to get her away from the Rowdyruff, but her stubborn sister snatched her arm back to her side.
"You're not going anywhere with him!" Blossom yelled. Buttercup grabbed Butch's hand, sticking her nose up in the air.
"Yes, I am." With that, Buttercup led the way back to Butch's truck. Blossom yelled at her to stop, but Buttercup kept going, tuning her out. The two ducked under the police tape and entered Butch's truck. Butch glanced at Buttercup and was about to say something before Buttercup lifted her hand. "Just go." Butch clicked on his truck and drove down the road again in the direction of Rachel's house.
Three weeks passed since the day of the memorial. It was the beginning of June and the heat was rising along with the tension within Bubbles. She was itching to pick up her phone and call Boomer or Blossom or Brick or anyone for that matter! Jessie was on a rage-induced rampage that was filled with nothing other than the sole purpose of making the super-powered group hurt as much as he did in their high school years. Bubbles thought it was silly. Nothing that happened in high school was important enough to hold a five year old grudge. What would make Jessie start to act like this? Better yet, where in the world did Jessie get his powers from? Were they always there, or did he pick them up when he disappeared? If so, who gave them to him? She had to find out so her friends and family were safe. Bubbles had to pay Boomer a visit before it was too late.
Boomer sighed as he lay in bed. Ever since the funeral, everyone seemed more bummed out than usual. Blossom was barely seen at all anymore, Brick was too down in the dumps about what he'd accidentally done to Vincent, Bubbles seemed like she knew something important but didn't want to tell anyone, and Butch and Buttercup were too busy planning their own lives together to deal with their siblings' plights.
Boomer rubbed his face before hoisting himself up from his bed. He shuffled over to the window and closed the blinds until his room was comfortably dark. He crawled back into his bed and threw the blankets over his head. All he could do now was to take a well deserved nap…
Bubbles sat in her car staring out the front windshield, frowning deeply. Every single question regarding the brunette man buzzed through her head, causing her mind to become almost overwhelmingly jumbled. Her bright blue eyes stared unblinking out the window at the bright afternoon light outside. She brought a hand up and pulled at the ends of her hair that hung low on her shoulder from a ponytail. She sighed before unbuckling herself from her seat and jumping out of the car. She glanced up at the house on the small hill and walked up to the stairs that brought her to the front door. She lifted her hand and knocked.
"Boomer? Are you home?" The door opened, and the blonde Rowdyruff stood with a bright smile.
"Bubbles, just the girl I wanted to talk to!" Bubbles smiled.
"I hope it's okay that I come over unannounced. Are you busy?" Boomer glanced down at himself and motioned towards his blue pajamas.
"Considering that I'm still in PJ's, I would have to say no, I'm not busy. Come in." Boomer moved back to let the young woman in. "Did you want something to drink?" Bubbles shook her head.
"No, I'm fine, but thank you." Boomer lead her to the living room after she removed her shoes and jacket. Boomer glanced back at her as they walked down the hallway.
"I hope it's not weird that I have another guest here while you are." Bubbles chuckled.
"No, why would it-" Bubbles stopped right in her tracks as Boomer came to the living room. Sitting in a chair next to the window was Jessie. Boomer glanced back at the stunned Powerpuff and frowned.
"Uh, Bubbles? Are you okay?" Bubbles kept her eyes on the brunette. Bubbles finally blinked and cleared her throat.
"Y-yeah, um, yeah, I'm fine." Boomer smiled and plopped back down on the couch. Bubbles slowly sat next to him, trying to forcibly hold back her meltdown.
"So, Boomer, are we still up for going skating on Friday?" Jessie asked smirking as he eyed Bubbles. The blonde Powerpuff tried not to scoff at his question. She knew he was trying to egg her on, but she was determined to not let it get to her. Boomer nodded with a smile.
"Definitely! I hope you're ready to get pushed over every time I pass you." Jessie chuckled.
"Not if I knock you down first." Jessie teased wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. Boomer chuckled.
"And what would happen if you successfully got me on the ground?" Boomer teased back, scooting closer to the edge of the couch. Jessie leaned over and stared deeply into Boomer's eyes.
"Well, then I guess everyone else will have to be prepared for an hour long show." Boomer leaned back and laughed wholeheartedly.
"Oh-ho! Man, I've fucking missed you, Jessie." The brunette smiled also leaning back in his chair.
"I missed you more," he whispered.
Bubbles had had enough. She was not about to let Boomer get sucked back into this with Jessie.
"Okay, stop!" Bubbles jumped up from the couch and frowned down at the two men. Boomer looked back up at her confused.
"What's wrong, Bubbles?"
"Jessie is tricking you, Boomer! Can't you see? Everything was fine before he came back. Now look at what's happened! Buttercup is having trouble with the baby, Blossom's a wreck, Brick faces every legal thing she can throw at him, and Vincent is dead! And it's all because of him! He has powers, Boomer! HIM is back, and I'm pretty sure he gave him those powers! That's probably the reason why he went missing for all of those years! Boomer, we have to stop him before he messes with anyone else." Boomer stared at her wide-eyed.
"Wha- Bubbles, what are talking about? Jessie, wha…?" Boomer jumped back as he saw the state of his friend. Jessie was standing up to his full height shooting daggers at the blonde Powerpuff. His eyes were a reddish-magenta hue and dark circles began to form underneath. His face suddenly broke out into a monstrous smirk.
"Now what did I say about telling someone, you stupid bitch?" Jessie suddenly leaped out and tackled Bubbles to the ground. He pinned her down and snapped at her neck as streams of saliva dripped from his now needlepoint teeth. Boomer was stunned. What was happening? Why couldn't he move? Where was Sasha? Why were the walls melting?
Boomer glanced at the walls as they melted away, shiny, thick goop the color of crimson dribbled down to the floor, giving way to an empty darkness beyond. Boomer couldn't hear the struggles of Jessie or Bubbles anymore as the room, and the rest of his house, broke away without reason. Soon the entire house was gone, and all that was left was Boomer and his couch. He glanced down and saw that there was no end to the darkness below him. He was completely alone.
"Oh, don't feel so alone, Boomer. I'm still here. I'll always be here…. BAHAHA AHAHAHAHA AHAHAHAHA AHAHAHAHAHA!" Boomer knew that laugh anywhere.
"No… No…. No, you're…you're supposed to be-"
"Dead?" The voice was suddenly joined by cloaked figure who stood a few feet away from the sitting Rowdyruff. To his surprise the couch was still there. The figure lifted up a hand and flicked it's wrist. The couch disappeared and Boomer flopped to the ground. Or fell to whatever was holding him up.
"How…? We destroyed you. In your own domain! You shouldn't be…alive. W-what's happening? What did you do to Bubbles and Jessie?" HIM chuckled.
"Oh, I don't think you have to worry about them. Especially Jessie. He can handle his own." Boomer stood up and frowned.
"You stay away from him! He's none of your concern. If you even look at him, I will come back for you and kill you myself, understand?" HIM chuckled again, louder this time, shaking his cloaked head in amusement.
"You really haven't caught on, have you? None of you have! You are all just as stupid and naive as I remember you being when you destroyed me. How droll! Do you really believe that Jessie is as innocent as you make him out to be? He is as vile and evil as I am! And that's saying something." Boomer frowned and shook his head.
"No, no, you're wrong! Jessie's been through a lot! You don't know anything about him!" HIM glided closer to the blonde, his white pin sharp glistening as he smiled sinisterly at Boomer.
"I know more about him than you do, dearest son. Where do you think he was when he went missing? Why do you think all of these strange and unusual occurrences happened right as he came back into your life? You don't know shit about him. And that is what will get you killed." HIM chuckled once more before backing away. "See you soon, son. Oh, and tell your brothers I said hi." HIM laughed once more. The multiple voices mingling with his grew louder and more demonic as he disappeared into a swirling mass of red and pink. Once he was gone, everything began to fade away…
Boomer gasped harshly as he came too from his nap. He jolted and quickly sat up in his bed. His stomach churned violently, and he quickly threw the blankets off of him. He placed a hand over his mouth as he rushed to the bathroom. Luckily, Boomer made it to the toilet before a stream of sick exited his mouth into the bowl below him. He clutched the seat as he retched into the toilet. Once he was done, he weakly brought his fingers up to flush the toilet. He sighed and grabbed some toilet paper and whipped his mouth before throwing it into the bowl as it was flushing. He carefully stood up and clutched the sink, turning it on and washing out his mouth.
What happened? It all felt so real. Maybe a little too real. What did HIM mean about not knowing Jessie? Boomer scoffed. Of course he knew Jessie! They were best friends back in high school! But that was high school. What if something changed between then and now? Boomer stared at himself in the mirror. What really happened to Jessie those five years ago? Jessie really had no reason to run away. Sure, he had problems with his father, but that was no reason to run away. Yeah, right. What about your father? Boomer sighed. He knew how hard it could get to have a father disappointed in you. Jessie was lucky. At least his didn't try to get rid of him.
Boomer rubbed his hands down his face. He thought he was done with that part of his life. All the pain and the hurt and the lies… It was too much for him to handle. Boomer turned off the sink and scratched at his head. He had a lot to think about. Either call up Jessie for an explanation or take comfort in talking to Bubbles whom he knew would listen to him. Hopefully, he would find out what HIM meant before anymore unexpected tragedy struck his family.
Hey Guys! I am back again with another chapter. This one is actually the shortest one I have made for this story. But don't you all worry, this is just the hump that will get us over into deep, dark, and sinister waters...
Also, for anyone who has visited and read my profile, you all know that I am a video game nerd. I'm sad that I couldn't go to that oh so wonderful event known as E3, but I did watch the stream online and I must say, Sony brought the fire for their conference! No talking just trailer, trailer, trailer! I loved it! So many games caught my eye like that new God of War and that new Hideo Kojima game with Norman motherfucking Reedus called Death Stranding! Ugh! My wishlist is so full right now! AND THEY'RE REMASTERING SKYRIM! FUCK YEAH! Almost cried when I saw that. So, if ya'll are video game nerds like me and you went to and/or saw it online, tell me what your fav game from that was!
Welp, I shall see you all next time! Bye!
~TheRedWolf
