The Section 13 crew made it back to San Francisco safely and successfully. Valmont got approved for medical leave until he was physically capable of returning and Charmaine was prescribed to bed rest until her concussion symptoms were gone. Tag was finishing telling Captain Black what had happened and how each of the people who came along helped rescue the McPeeks.
"The Taiwanese government is dealing with Chang and Sheila and will determine their punishment within a few days once they appear in court. They agreed to let us know what happens and have assured us that those two will not harass us again" Tag reported.
"Good work, Agent Tag" Captain Black praised, "As well as to all of you!" he said to everyone who had gone on the mission. Lydia appeared after checking on Valmont and Charmaine.
"Lydia I'm glad you and your nieces returned safely, though I'm sorry you had to go through what you did" Captain Black said sincerely.
Lydia smiled. "It's alright, Captain. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for saving our lives. We were really terrified but knowing that we have you guys to back us up means so much! I hope I can do something to repay you."
Jackie smiled back. "You're not indebted to us, Miss McPeek. The work you do here is more than enough!"
After the meeting dismissed, the Ice Crew turned towards Captain Black.
"Yo what's on the list for today, CB?" Strikemaster Ice asked.
Captain Black smiled. "Something that's a bit different than what you've done before."
The Ice Crew looked at him confused. "We gettin' assigned to something else?" MC Cobra asked.
Tag then smiled. "As a matter of fact, yes! I told Captain Black privately what you three did and he was so impressed that we agreed, with the court's approval as well, to sign your release! You'll serve the rest of your probation time working around here but you'll be getting paid for it! So there you go!"
The Ice Crew lit up with excitement right away. They were free!
"For reals? Yo that's off the hook! Thank you!" MC Cobra exclaimed.
"Yeah, thanks so much, yo!" Strikemaster Ice replied. Then he frowned for a minute. "I don't think I deserve it, though" he began, "I almost went bad again, Cobra and Fist are the ones who should be free, not me."
Tag looked at him with confusion at first but then put a hand on his shoulder. "But you didn't go bad, you changed your mind and helped save Lydia and her nieces! Plus Cassie told me how happy you made her when you told her that you liked her. Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie are like daughters to me and their happiness is important to me. All three of you have shown from this incident that you're here to stay on the good side and we can use your brains and butt-kicking skills here at Section 13!"
Captain Black nodded in agreement. "Tag is absolutely correct! Excuse us while we get the documents signed, you boys can have the day off for your own time and can get to work tomorrow!" He and Tag then walked off.
"I can't believe it! This is sweet, man!" MC Cobra exclaimed, "Finally we can live life the right way and have some fun while we're at it!"
"Got that right, dude" DJ Fist replied with a smile. "What do you guys wanna do first?"
Strikemaster Ice grinned. "Maybe we can ask our ladies what they wanna do" he said teasingly, which made them laugh. Then he got serious. "Look guys, I'm really sorry I turned my back on you, yo. I don't know what I was thinking! All I know is that nothin' will ever break us apart, cuz our posse is off the chain!"
MC Cobra smiled. "Hey it's all good, man, that's all in the past now! We're in this together, and nothin's gonna change that! Just glad that we're so loyal to each other". DJ Fist nodded enthusiastically.
Cassie and Kaysha were playing Robo Mercs 2 in the lounge while Charmaine slept on one of the couches. "Man!" Kaysha groaned as she lost the fifth match in a row, "This game is totally not my thang!"
Cassie smirked. "Well obviously! Geez you and Charmaine are the worst competition ever!"
"Yo maybe you want some real competition then?" they heard a voice say at the entrance. They turned around and smiled when they saw the Ice Crew standing there.
"Well get your butt in here and play then!" Cassie taunted.
Ice laughed. "A'ight then! Let's do this!"
Kaysha handed him her GameBoy and greeted DJ Fist with a kiss.
Cassie smiled mischievously when she saw her older sister and DJ kiss. "You guys feel free to make out while me and Ice kick each other's butts!" she said sarcastically, which made her and Ice snicker. Kaysha and DJ rolled their eyes but blushed.
MC Cobra sat next to the sleeping Charmaine and gently propped her head on his lap, kissing her head and stroking her soft hair, anxious for her to return to 100%.
"Take that, Ice man! You can't touch this!" Cassie trash talked as her and Ice battled back and forth.
"Right back at ya, girl!" Ice exclaimed as he starting wearing her character down.
"Aw snap, I'm almost dead!" Cassie said with surprise as she ferociously pressed buttons to try to win the match.
Bam! One kick to the chest and Optimus Sass was defeated.
"Hizzle!" Cassie exclaimed. "I can't believe you beat me! How'd you do that?"
Strikemaster Ice grinned. "Read through the cheat book you gave me on our flight back to San Fran. Let's just say that I got a good memory!" he teased.
Kaysha tilted her head and looked at Cassie. "Cheat book?"
Cassie smiled somewhat nervously. "Ahhh just a book with the secrets of the game that the company gave me before the game was released. It ain't cheatin'!"
Kaysha's eyes widened. "You have a secrets book and never told me or Charmaine?"
Cassie smirked. "Why would I? You guys suck at Robo Mercs so badly it wouldn't do you any good!"
Strikemaster Ice laughed out loud as Kaysha smacked her younger sister. "You little brat!" she teased, "I'm gonna get you back for that eventually!"
Charmaine started moving around as she was waking up. Cobra looked down and smiled as she opened her eyes.
"Hey cutie" he said romantically. Charmaine looked up at him and smiled big.
"Mmm now that's a nice thing to wake up to" she said flirtatiously as Cobra leaned over to kiss her.
"Hey sis, how ya feelin'?" Cassie said as she and Ice were about to choose different characters.
"Better for sure" Charmaine replied, "Still a little dizzy but my head doesn't hurt as bad!"
"Well of course you're a little dizzy, Cobra just kissed you!" Kaysha teased. Everyone starting laughing as Charmaine rolled her eyes.
"Oh hush it!"
Kaysha smiled. "Hah means I'm right. Charmaine! Cassie has a secrets book for Robo Mercs 2 that she never told us about! Can you believe that?"
Charmaine sat up and stared at Cassie. "Bball sis say what? Cassandra!" she exclaimed.
Cassie smirked. "Cassie!"
"Yeah yeah" Charmaine scoffed, "How could you not say anything? Am I so bad at Robo Mercs that you figured the book wouldn't help me?"
Cassie looked at her somewhat suspiciously. "How did you know what I was thinking?" she asked.
Charmaine grinned. "Dude. I'm your sister! I can read you like a baby book!" she replied which made the six laugh.
"Hey don't you guys have to go back to work?" Cassie asked the Ice Crew as she looked at the clock.
The trio looked at each other and smiled. They hadn't told the sisters about being released but now would be the right time!
"We got the day off and start our new job tomorrow!" Cobra replied.
"New job?" the three girls said at the same time.
Strikemaster Ice smiled big. "CB and Tag were impressed that we helped save yo lives and all and rewarded us by releasing us from probation! We serve the rest of the time workin' for Section 13 but we get paid for it and are free from prison!"
Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie stared at them in shock for a minute and then burst with excitement.
"Oh my gosh! That's so awesome!" Charmaine exclaimed, giving Cobra a huge hug.
"For reals!" Cassie replied, "Now we can hang out more and stuff for the last week that we're here!"
Tag randomly walked in and smiled at the sight of the six youths.
"Hey kiddos!" Tag began, "I just need to borrow the guys for a minute so that they can sign the forms to confirm their release!"
As the Ice Crew got up and walked out the door, the McPeek girls walked up as well and smiled at Tag.
"Thank you, Tag, for releasing the Ice Crew! You're the best!" Charmaine exclaimed as they all hugged him at the same time.
Tag smiled back. "You're welcome! My goodness though, you're gonna make me cry" he said teasingly, which made the girls laugh.
A week passed by quickly. The Ice Crew enjoyed their new job and was moved to a comfortable living space within Section 13. They started wearing the same black clothes that they did before and spent a lot of time with the McPeek girls, going to some of Lydia's fitness classes with them and hanging out outside Section 13. The day came that Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie had to fly back home to Los Angeles.
"I'm gonna miss you girls so much!" Tag exclaimed as he hugged each one of them, "I had so much fun! Tell Larry me and Liddy say hi next time you see him, and Cassie! For heaven's sake please don't try to sell your "adventure in Taiwan" to the tabloids!" he teased. Kaysha and Charmaine laughed out loud as Cassie smacked his behind.
"Oh Taggart, way to take the fun out of everything!" she teased back.
Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie said goodbye to everyone at Section 13 that they had become well acquainted with, including the Enforcers (who, being classy men, stopped flirting with them once they noticed the love connection between them and the Ice Crew), Jackie, Viper, Tohru, Uncle, Captain Black, and Jade.
"Aww I'm gonna miss you guys! You're so cool!" Jade said sadly.
Charmaine smiled as she gave her a hug. "You're a cool kid too, Jade! Hey, if you're ever in LA, give us a jingle and we can chill! You got our numbers! But keep in touch for sure!"
Jackie gave each of the girls a hug as he told them goodbye. "Thank you for being such a good influence on Jade", he began, "I hope she can grow up to be as kind and mature as you three."
Cassie smiled. "Thanks, Jackie, that really means a lot! And thanks again for saving us, you're a pretty good butt kicker!" she teased.
Valmont, who had gained enough strength to start walking around, said goodbye to the McPeek girls as well. "It was such a pleasure to have you girls come here, I had a blast being around you! I wish you the very best for the next school year!"
"Aww thanks!" Charmaine replied, "Take care of Liddy and make sure she and Tag behave!"
Valmont laughed. "Oh I won't let you down!"
Finally, the McPeek girls turned towards the Ice Crew and swallowed hard. They were gonna miss them the most, even more than their own aunt! Cassie asked Lydia if they could each have a minute alone and then walked off with their sweethearts.
"I'm gonna miss you, DJ" Kaysha said, "Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me!" DJ pulled her close and let her head rest on his shoulder.
"I'm gonna miss you too, pretty girl" he replied, "Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me too!"
Kaysha smiled. "Here's my number" she wrote on his hand, "Keep in touch ok?"
DJ Fist smiled back. "I will" he promised as he wiped away the tears that were starting to form in Kaysha's eyes and kissed her.
"Man I really like it here in San Fran, I'm gonna miss it here! Though I won't miss it as much as you" Charmaine said as she and MC Cobra were overlooking the main part of Section 13. Cobra smiled and intertwined his fingers with hers.
"I'm gonna miss you too, cutie. Thank you for coming into my life, yo! I hope I get to see you again or else I'll miss you too much."
Charmaine's tear-welled eyes looked into his. "You will. I don't know when but I promise we'll see each other again" she said as the two leaned towards each other and shared a passionate kiss.
"I'm gonna miss you, man!" Cassie said to Strikemaster Ice, "And I'm not just saying that cuz I only have Charmaine and Kaysha to play Robo Mercs 2 with!"
Strikemaster Ice laughed. "Imma miss you too, girl!" He then bravely took one of her hands into his and held it as he looked at her. "Listen, thanks again for giving me a second chance, yo. I'm lucky to know such a great chick."
Cassie smiled. "Hey no problem! And I'm lucky to know such a chill dude" she replied as the two hugged each other tight. They looked at each other and before they knew it, their lips met in a soft but romantic kiss.
Cassie's face turned bright red. "Did... we just kiss?" she asked, feeling lightheaded from ecstasy.
Strikemaster Ice grinned day dreamily. "Umm…uh…yeah we did" he stuttered, "I really liked it yo!"
Cassie smiled the smile that Ice was attracted to. "We should do it again, then" she said teasingly as the two pulled each other close and kissed a few more times.
The six walked back towards Lydia, each couple holding hands. "Alright girlies" Lydia began, "I hate to say it but we gotta get going if you wanna make your flight on time." She started walking towards the Section 13 parking lot as the McPeeks girls shared one last goodbye kiss with their crushes. Tears fell from each of the girls' eyes as they walked away.
"It's gonna be okay girls" Lydia said as she hugged her nieces at the same time before getting into her car, "I promise you that this isn't the end but just the beginning."
A month and a half went by. Lydia continued to counsel clients on fitness and nutrition and taught her fitness classes, recently adding a Dance Up class, inspired by Charmaine and Cassie's love for dancing. Valmont returned to work two weeks prior and was working hard towards a promotion to assistant manager of the criminal justice department. He and Lydia started spending more time together and even let Tag tag along sometimes so that the friendship between Valmont and Tag could grow. The Ice Crew continued to work hard at their new job and was able to keep in touch with Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie once they got their own phones. They missed the McPeek girls tremendously and continued to think about them every day.
One night, as he was stretching for Lydia's Pump Up class, MC Cobra got lost in thought about Charmaine. He missed her beautiful brown eyes, her gorgeous smile, her fun, upbeat personality, and the softness of her lips. He wanted to see her so badly! Before the McPeek girls left, Lydia took a picture of each couple and gave them copies once printed. Cobra kept the picture of him and Charmaine next to his bed stand and looked at it every time he woke up and before he fell asleep.
"Alright guys!" Lydia said to her class, "Today I want to do something a little different but just as fun: volleyball!" The whole class got excited, which made Lydia smile. "The gym is open for our use so we'll head over there, do our warm-up, and serve it up!"
"Hey is it cool if we play too?" a voice called out. The whole class turned around and smiled huge when they saw Kaysha, Charmaine, and Cassie standing at the door.