Hey there y'all! =D

Anyone remember me? Vaguely? Sorta?

Well, if you do, and you were some of my original readers: I missed you all so much! Thanks for your awesome support and thanks for coming back!

For new readers: Welcome, and thanks for checking out my humble little story! :)

Okay, it has been a long time…even longer than I had planned…sorry guys, my bad. But my almost month long delay since I've been back is due to a long list of reasons:

Jet lag sucks. A lot. Anyone who has ever made a Paris-SFO flight will understand.

Friends and Family have been fighting to spend endless amounts of time with me to make up for the six months :P

For the next six months, the French girl I'd been living with is going to be here with me now for six months and I'm busy teaching her English, a fun, but exhausting job.

I literally just got back from a week long excursion up to Ashland, Oregon.

I've been…emotionally suffering from a difficult and sticky break-up with a French guy…who I really miss, even I haven't spoken to him since we spilt (a couple days before I came home)…so, yeah, that kinda hurts still, but at least I'm not crying anymore…usually :(

Anywho, those are my reasons for being so late…sorry again, and hope this chappie meets your expectations! =P

With the brakes making a worrying screeching noise, the train lurched to a stop and a rush of people threw themselves at the squeaky doors, as frantic to leave the train as if a fire alarm was ringing and black smoke was pouring into the car. Boomer gave her a fleeting hurry-up-and-follow-me-look before joining the throng of people evacuating. Bubbles leapt to her feet and wriggled her way after him, terrified at the thought of losing her only guide.

Bubbles grunted slightly in surprise as the wind was momentarily knocked out of her by a man who roughly shoved into the side of the train car to get past. He didn't even offer an apologetic glance or word; he just continued to move on. Bubbles however shot an irritated glare at the back of his retreating head before forcing her way onto the station floor. She paused in mid-step, her large blue eyes scanning the crowded area, looking for Boomer's blue hoodie.

"I'm here," murmured a quiet, but distinct voice from behind her. Bubbles turned on her heel and found the other teenager.

"Let's go," he said, insecurity hidden behind his soft tone and the rarity of eye contact initiated on his part.

At least I'm not the only unsure about this situation. Maybe he is just as confused and stressed as I am. That would make sense, we did kick their butts pretty badly before…

Bubbles gave him one nod, and Boomer broke off the awkward, non-existent conversation and led the way up the stairs, onto the streets. Although bubbles was more of a nature girl, she couldn't help but admit that the skyscrapers of downtown New York were magnificent. They towered above her head, massive constructions of glass, casting shadows pointing westward in the early morning sun. Bubbles observed them with a visible trace of admiration as she trotted after Boomer, who seemed to know exactly where he was supposed to be taking them.

Bubbles' breath came out as little spurts of fog, and the tip of her nose and ears were beginning to tingle already from the frostiness of this sharp October morning. She zipped up her jacket in an attempt to insulate herself from the pricking coldness, continuing as always to keep one step behind her counterpart. After about three blocks of marching, Bubbles took an extra skipping step to catch up to him and, huffing from the exercise in the cold. She paused for a moment, falling slightly behind again, hesitant to break the silence between them. But, after a brief consideration She hopped back up to his side and puffed her question out before she could change her mind again, hoping he would read the pink dusting on her cheeks as a reaction to the cold.

"Um, Boomer, where exactly are we going?" He glanced at her, an unreadable, guarded expression on his face. He might have been able to hide what he was really thinking from her, but he couldn't hide that he was hiding something.

Honestly, how does someone ever get to be one of the country's most elite spies if he doesn't have a decent poker face?

He slowed his pace and turned sideways.

"Well, standard procedure is to get checked into a hotel. After that, well, um, maybe we could go take a look around the city. We still got most of the day in front of us, so perhaps we can get several of the usual information-bugs questioned before night? I don't know – if that's okay with you – I guess, er, I mean, you okay with that?" His voice stayed rather muted, for privacy sake's, but I could easily hear the stutter in his words as he struggled with his sentences.

Honestly, I bet he can't be smooth if his life depended on it! How can it be that someone so obviously not intimidating makes me so nervous? I should stop blowing this situation out of proportion; maybe that will relax us both. I wonder, if we didn't have all of the hostility between our siblings, could it be easier to be around Boomer? He doesn't look very angry at me…only cautious. Diplomatic. Wary. I'll try to be careful too, than it'll be a lot simpler to get on with this mission, which is complicated enough without all this added side pressure!

"Okay, yeah, sure, that sounds fine to me, Boomer. You call the shots, I don't know how to go about this…um, yeah…" I kept my voice low, but not too secretive, as he did, not to draw too much attention.

There's an awesome start to your future tactful responses…not. Come on Bubbles, focus! No reason to make a fool out of yourself for nothing!

"Okay."

Maybe I should use one word answers too, there are a lot simpler…but that would make it look like I don't want to talk to him, like I don't want him to know what I'm thinking…

He went back to his brisk pace, but this time Bubbles speed up her pace to be next to him as the traversed a few more blocks until they got to a four star hotel. Boomer gave her a fleeting glance, as if about to ask her opinion, before he quickly shrugged the look off and brushed through the double doors.

Bubbles winced internally at their new, bi-polared relationship, which was already kicking off to a bizarre start. Oh man, I hope things aren't going to be this weird the entire time…

The pair got two rooms on the second floor and promptly dropped off their backpacks, meeting back in the hallway.

Boomer's unease – or whatever was making him so uncomfortable and strange –flickered in and out of his eyes for a split second, before he gave her a jerk of the head to wordlessly indicate for her to follow, before leading the way back down to the street.

This time, he hailed one of New York's famous yellow taxis and directed him the warehouses on the cargo docks.

A little cliché…gang rendezvous in an abandoned warehouse. I guess stereotypes have some truth after all.

But to her surprise, the dock they were dropped off at as far from abandoned. The strip of land between shore and sea was surging with life, shouts of men, hollering orders as they unloaded a newly-arrived, colossal fright carrier. Boxes that could fit a dozen people quite comfortably were being lowered by a crane, while the cargo ship's crew and what she guessed was the homeland security buzzed around, doing their inventory and inspecting jobs.

Bubbles threw a sideways glance at Boomer who was already waiting for her. She mentally scolded herself for gawking at the boat and gave him her attention. Although his body was turned towards her, as if in conversation, his gaze wasn't meeting her eyes.

"Um, we're going to have to walk a few blocks that way," he pointed north-west-ish, "We can't take a taxi directly to it…"

"Why not?" Bubbles curiosity sprang out before she could clench it and give him a nod or short sentence to lead the way.

Ugh, I'm soooo bad at this whole spy operation! I should have just given the go-ahead instead of sounding like a tourist…

He shrugged, still never making direct eye contact.

"Security reasons. Neither we nor they want the taxis to be able to identify where we are going if questioned."

"Oh. Okay."

Now if that didn't sound like a little child who'd just been lectured, I don't know what does. Why does it all have to be so…bizarre between us?

Boomer (yet again) led the way, out of the chaos of the docks. The pair silently wound their ways through some of the shadier looking apartment buildings of the city, until Boomer stopped in ten feet next to a concrete block of housing, no more noticeable than any of the identical ones around it. The blue ruff turned to her, his eyes actually connecting with hers for a second.

"Okay, er – don't panic, but stick with me, don't speak if you don't have to, and above all, don't look intimidated. Act like you would be completely willing to shred anyone's worthless hides and you'll be fine, I promise."

Bubbles felt her eyes get a little wider in shock but quickly blinked and nodded.

Well, that didn't sound very reassuring…what's in there? Gee it does look like kind of a horrible place…don't panic, I have super-powers, I have Boomer. I just gotta act tough, that's all…

Boomer took one step, and then jerked his head back around.

"Oh yeah, and don't mention the powers or the puff-ness or anything. The source knows, but we can't let any of these other guys find out, okay?"

Bubbles gave another wide-eyed nod, hoping she didn't look as worried as she felt.

What if I slip up and ruin everything? What I destroy everything Boomer and his brothers have been working for? They've been trying for years to get this job, this status and what if my big mouth and nerves go and dash any hope for their future? This is too much pressure, I don't know if I can –

But, before Bubbles could even think about what she could and couldn't do, Boomer had passed through the graffiti door and Bubbles had to follow him.

Look tough, look tough…don't forget, you have super-powers, but you can't act like it, oh my goodness, look tough, look tough!

Boomer pushed past the loose door with ease and started down the hallway, not letting hesitating to wait for Bubbles, afraid she would change her mind and chicken out. Her fear had only been too obvious in the streets, and he didn't want her to get cold feet two inches inside. He sped-walked down the filthy hallway with an frigid glare to any hung-over junkie lounging on the floor. No one gave them any trouble. Boomer glanced out of the corner of his eye to see Bubbles right on his tail, mouth set in a fierce line, but the depths of her baby blue eyes were frightened.

Honestly, you'd think a puff would have a little more backbone. Maybe it had been her sisters all along being the scary ones, maybe I had never noticed before…Well, she'd better suck it up now because there is no room for allowance on this case. As long as she doesn't cry, dear lord, anything but crying…

Boomer shrugged off the idea with haste and led the way up several flights of stairs, Bubbles still following him. No mater how much of a reputation for being a crybaby, Boomer trusted the fifteen-year-old could hold herself together enough not to break down in tears. She'd faced criminals before, and she had him to do the talking.

I'm such a worry-wart. I used to get called a crybaby too when I was five…hell, we're counterparts, I'm a frickin' spy, and she's used to being the good guy who always wins the day. We'll make a bad-ass team, once we get over this I-have-no-clue-what-to-say spell. Got to trust that. Even if we suck at being coworkers, there's no doubt we can utterly destroy anyone who gets in our way. Positive, Boomer, think positive. Sherry has some sense in that screwed-up head of her; there's a logical reason why we are on a team together.

Boomer turned of on the fourth floor and continued down the stained carpet, which looked as grimy and disgusting on every other floor. Boomer had his eyes already set on one of the far doors, so he didn't pay much attention to a weird-looking, unshaven man wearing a stained white tank top and busted-up jeans leaning in an apartment doorway, half-empty beer in hand, eyes completely blood-shot. This low-life specimen gave the pair a stained-tooth grin that could only be described as demented. Thanks to super-powered hearing and the fact Bubbles was still following him like a lost puppy, he could hear her take in the faintest breath of air

Wow, she really does rely a lot on her sisters to be the intimidating ones. I guess that's okay, she still brings a good fight.

Boomer's thoughts wandered briefly to a scar he had on his side from one of their childhood brawls, but he continued briskly down the hallway, not giving a chance for Bubbles to slow down.

He stopped three doors away from the end of the row on the left side, and knocked a few times on the pale, washed-out wood that severed as a door. The barrier opened the crack, but whoever was still barring their entrance remained silent. As instructed, Boomer waited for three seconds before murmuring into the crack.

"Can I speak with Andrea?"

Another three seconds.

"You can, but not here," rasped a soft, broken voice.

Boomer waited the allotted three seconds.

"She left?"

He let the third period of time pass, before answering the final code.

"Fuck, sorry to hear that."

Three more seconds passed before finally the door opened and Boomer slipped in, counting that Bubbles would follow. Behind the door was a trashed, run-down apartment, which barley had enough room for a cot, an ancient T.V. on the floor, and a small beer fridge. The entire place reeked of week old Thai food and unwashed sheets. In this picture of poverty, stood a thin, wiry man with shaggy, unkempt hair which fell into his eyes. He wore battered boxers and a faded T-shirt which said "Honker's Bar, est. 1947" His hands were large and strong looking, but there were no other remarkable features about this man. His physical appearance fit in easily with his living quarters and neighbors.

A quick visual scan confirmed the place wasn't bugged. On walls this barren, the marks would be as obvious to him as a firework show on the fourth of July. Boomer waited until Bubbles was at his side and the door was closed before speaking, again in a low voice.

"We've got serious problems across Europe and Asia. Serial killing. Cause of death – fear. Recently, we've had a first attack on American soil. No government has any clue to even how the murderer is doing it and we can only guess our problems are growing worse by the hour."

The thin man stared at them intensely, dark circles under his eyes giving an insomniac look to his already haggard face.

"This is the first I've heard of this. And I certainly have no clue how one could kill with fear," he rasped in his scruffy voice, as if it was drying up from fatigue or misuse.

Boomer locked the man in a meaningful look before he gave a curt nod.

"Very well. Stay on the lookout."

"I always do."

Boomer abruptly blinked and turned for the door, opening it for Bubbles to leave first, before closing it behind him without a backwards glance at the miserable-looking source, as people such as him were nicknamed in this profession.

Well, he's not the only one who has no idea. Who, or what, the hell are we looking for?

Okay, there's my chappie, thanks for reading, and I hope it pleases you guys enough ^^ I certainly had a blast writing! Ah, so good to finally be back on track!

As always, the blues are difficult to write for, at least for me, but for once, I had some action for them, and I think I kept them in character enough.

Music Stuff (If you're interested): So, if anyone remembers, I was going to try to look for a 'blue' band to listen to. You guys gave me some suggestions (Thanks guys!:D) but I just wasn't able to concentrate on writing with them…so I listened mostly to Bruno Mars, Cascada, and Basshunter. I don't know why, but dance music really isn't distracting to me and actually helps me go faster. :P

One last note, which actually is kinda important: I have always struggled with chapter length and the pressure to write quickly, so I've been thinking about setting deadlines for myself in the week. I was thinking about saying I'll update every Sunday and Thursday, but nothing is set in stone yet.

I don't know, but please review and let me know what you think, and if this sounds reasonable to help me get long chapters out to you quickly and regularly.

Also, review on the story please; I love it when you do!

Peace out! :D