With his claws now free, Him felt more determined than ever to recover all that he was before he'd been robbed of memory and purpose. In time, he found that he was gaining a better grasp of his powers; before, with his claws bound shut and in recovery, he was nearly helpless. Now, his hands were no longer tied.

With concentration, he could call forth fire, create focused energy and, perhaps most importantly, he found he could change his form. This was perhaps the most taxing effort on his part, but with a new form, a mask to wear before the rest of the world, Him could leave the house.

More importantly, he could leave the house to spend more time alone with Bubbles.

He looked up as she stepped into her room, smiling once she saw Him sitting on the edge of her bed. She set down her backpack and extended her hand. Him obliged and held out his claw to her. Bubbles tapped the bony shell with her fingertips. This had become their informal greeting to each other.

"How are you feeling?"

"I am very well." He took a breath. "I can change my form. I'll take one that doesn't frighten your father."

Bubbles's eyes widened. "You can change?"

Him stood from her bed and furrowed his brow in concentration. "Yes. Watch me."

Bubbles did watch.

The deep crimson hue of Him's skin faded, faded until it became a shade to match her own. His claws splintered, reforming themselves into the strong hands of a young man. His tail shriveled into his spine, his yellow eyes brightened and reshaped into the round eyes of a human.

All at once, Him stood before her, reformed into a young man. She stood and moved closer to him, her eyes near buldging from her head. "Him, you look so...different."

He shrugged. "That was the idea."

To aid his disguise, Him's voice was without its echo and seemed stripped down to Bubbles's ears. She shook her head and took one of his hands into hers, dragging her fingertips along his open palm. There was nothing frightening in and of this change itself, that was not what bothered her. More, there was the sense that this false thing standing before her was simply not Him, and she had no wish to see it more than was necessary.

"This isn't you. Please, change back." She said.

Him narrowed his eyes. "Change back?"

"Yes. I'm sorry, it's just too strange to see you like this." Bubbles wasn't sure why, but she didn't like the idea of Him feeling the need to hide what he was behind a false form.

Him did as she asked, returning to himself. "I thought you'd be happy."

He moved to sit beside her on the end of her bed.

"I am happy for you...just, please don't feel like you have to change your shape for us. I kind of like you the way you are."

Surprised, Him had nothing to say to that, but he drew Bubbles in close for a thankful hug.

The next morning, Bubbles interrupted Him's Saturday ritual of taking time in the backyard to recover more of his power. He could feel his power returning, his grasp of them was becoming easier.

Bubbles snuck up behind him and tugged on the end of his tail. "C'mon, Him. Buttercup and I are going to the Farmer's Market, and you should have some time out of the house."

"Is it true that you can change into a man?" Buttercup asked.

Him smiled at the raven-haired sister, "Of course." He concentrated, and the change came to him much easier than it had days before. It was hardly an effort this time, using his power was beginning to feel completely natural. He cleared his throat, adjusting his voice. "How's this?"

Buttercup's eyes widened as Bubbles's had the night before, to see such a dramatic transformation. Still, she couldn't let him think she was too impressed. "It'll do. Let's go."

After weeks of being kept within the confines of the Utonium household, Him was happy to be out on a trip into the city to the Farmer's Market. Apparently, Blossom had decreed that their family should adopt a strict diet as a move to support the consumption of locally grown produce and organic meat.

Mostly because arguing with Blossom could grow exhausting, the family had gotten onboard with her advocacy and in time found that organic cooking and visiting the market didn't have to be the chores they imagined them to be. Butterup knew that her skills were a bit lacking in the kitchen, and so she was in search of simpler recipes that would produce tasty meals. Because the market drew a diverse crowd every Sunday morning, Bubbles liked to practice her language skills with the farmers and other shoppers.

Him was simply glad to be out of the house. He was sure that he'd never been to an outdoor market before, and he was glad to remain close to Bubbles's side as she moved from stall to stall, tasting sample slices of oranges and testing the firmness of vine tomatoes.

Him blinked and turned back, sure that he'd seen something, some flash of purple that reminded him of-

He turned back to see Bubbles speaking with a young man. Immediately he recognized him as being part of the group that she'd gone out with that night. Him grabbed Buttercup's arm and turned her to face Bubbles. "Buttercup, who is that?" He demanded.

"Oh, no, not that guy again!" On seeing who Bubbles was with, Buttercup forgot her annoyance with the demon for touching her.

Him glared in suspicion at the young man as he said something to make Bubbles laugh. "Who is he?"

"Ugh." Buttercup groaned. "It's Marcus Allen. He's this guy Bubbles met in her first-level art class a few years ago, they dated for a few months just because he liked her so much but I never really liked him. I don't think she did, either."

Feeling the tide of possessive rage die down, Him smirked at her. "Is there anyone outside of the family that you do like?"

Buttercup glared at him. "No."

"Noted." Him watched as Marcus reached for Bubbles's hand, and he felt his temper begin to simmer. "All right, what's he doing now?"

Buttercup rolled her eyes, "Ugh, who cares? Probably trying to get another pity-date."

Bubbles was approaching them, the young man close on her heels. "Hey guys, Buttercup you remember Marcus."

Marcus extended his hand, "Hi Buttercup, I haven't seen you in a while."

Pointedly, Buttercup ignored his hand. "There's a reason for that. Excuse me."

Bubbles frowned at Buttercup's retreating back before turning to introduce Him, her mysterious houseguest. "Ahem, and Marcus, this is…Larry."

Him shot Bubbles a look for her choice in his fake name, but just as quickly turned his attention to the young man that dared to touch what Him thought of as his. "Hello…Marcus."

Him shook Marcus's hand, grasping it with a minute touch of his strength. At the moment, Him might look like a mortal man, but what Marcus had just felt was his own hand caught in a spiny, powerful claw.

Marcus screamed at the sudden crushing pressure on his hand.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry – sometimes I don't know my own strength. You looked like a man who could take a firm handshake." Him said, and he almost sounded genuine. Almost.

Bubbles frowned at Him before turning to her friend. "Marcus, I'll get you some ice." Quickly, Bubbles moved off with the young man, who was still cradling his hand.

At hearing the commotion, Buttercup returned and scowled at the demon, "You'll never hear me say this again, and I'll deny it to anyone who asks about this but…that was great!" She laughed and slapped him on the back.

Him smiled at her. "Thank you, I certainly thought so."

It was only days later that Buttercup slapped her hand on the tabletop, fed up with the way her sisters were avoiding the elephant in the room. "I want to know what we're going to do about Him. You've both seen what he's been doing – he's starting to use his powers again, how long do you think it'll be before his full memory returns?"

Blossom nodded. She knew what Buttercup was referring to; they had seen Him in the backyard, pacing in frustration, the air surrounding him had been crackling with black magic. His claws had been snapping, his eyes glowing, and as they had watched, his entire body had been consumed in black flames – only to die out a moment later, leaving Him confused and surrounded by a circle of scorched grass. He'd also changed his size, his form and was seeming to gain a better grasp of energy spells.

"I know what you're saying, but I was watching Him too." Blossom began. "He wasn't using his powers toward any end, he looked like he was just kind of testing what he could do."

"What he could do is level Townsville!" Buttercup insisted.

"Well so could we – and once upon a time we did exactly that, remember?" Blossom reminded her. "But we haven't done it again because we don't want to, and neither will he. Look, there's no way that we can suppress Him's powers but we can still train him to use them for good."

Buttercup rolled her eyes, "And just how are we supposed to do that? He's not our pet!"

"No, he's Bubbles's."

Bubbles looked up, "What?"

"I told you I've been watching him-"

"You study Him because you want to write the world's first thesis in the field of Demonology!" Bubbles accused. While her sisters had kept their eyes on Him, wondering if his every breath will bring the end of the world, she had noticed her sisters' mix of acceptance and suspicion.

"That's beside the point, I've been watching him and it's clear that he likes you, Bubbles. You're his favorite PowerPuff, so I'm sure if you coax Him in a nice way he'll start to learn that he can help us." Blossom said. To her, it seemed perfectly logical. From the start, Bubbles had said that Him might become their ally - now that Him was remembering his considerable powers, it was time to test her sister's theory.

Bubbles gave the idea some thought. "Hmm…I'll try."