Bubbles looked tiredly down at her still blank sketch book page. She was trying desperately to stay awake and think of who she should use as the subject of her portrait, but it was becoming harder every minute. She had only gotten about three hours of sleep the night before, and her fatigue wasn't exactly helping her pick someone.
Maybe she could paint a villain, that was unexpected! Though finding one that would agree to pose for her would be hard. Mojo Jojo might agree to it if she stroked his ego enough, but she would have to ask her teacher if the subject had to be a human. Ace would make a striking painting with his angular face and green skin, but Bubbles doubted he'd have the patience to stay still long enough to pose for her. Him… No, Him was creepy, she wasn't even going to consider it. Princess would be annoying the entire time, so she was out of the question too.
Bubbles groaned and buried her head in her hands. This was too hard! When did art class get so complicated?
"You alright?" Elliot asked. He had decided to sit next to her today instead of shout at her from across the room as he usually did. "The last time I saw you this mopey was when Buttercup stole your stuffed octopus and hid it when we were eleven. Remember that? She told you someone stole it and didn't give it back to you for a whole week,"
"Of course I remember. That was the worst week of my life," she laughed lightly, lifting her head to look at her friend. "I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night; it's no big deal,"
"What were you up to? Late night crime fighting? Something kinky?" he asked. He laughed and poked her in the eraser end of the pencil he was holding.
"Nothing like that, you dork!" she exclaimed, snatching his pencil from his hand. "It's nothing, honestly. I'll tell you later,"
"Like at my house tonight? You're still coming, right?" he replied, trying to grab back his pencil.
Bubbles froze, effectively letting Elliot get back his pencil. "Oh no, I totally forgot about that!"
"Which is why I always remind you when we have plans," he said as he turned back to his own sketches.
"No, Ellie, I don't know if I can go. These villains are back in town and Blossom doesn't want us splitting up. It's dangerous," Bubbles explained.
"What? That's lame! You can take care of yourself just fine; I've seen you beat up some pretty buff dudes before. Besides, what villains would you run into in the suburbs? My house is totally safe," he replied, frowning at his sketch as he worked on it.
"Yeah, but these guys are pretty dangerous," she started. But then she paused for a moment. What were the chances of her running into the Ruffs in the suburbs? Pretty low, if you asked her. And if one of them was following her or something, odds are it would be Boomer. She was confident that she could hold her own in a fight against him. "You know what? I'll try to convince Bloss if I can go,"
"You're the best, Bubs!" he grinned.
"What do you mean no?!" Buttercup exclaimed, her fists tightening with anger.
"Was I not clear enough? You aren't allowed to go off on your own!" Blossom stated, with her hands on her hips and a stern frown on her face.
"What makes you think you can tell me what to do? I'm going to the gym!" Buttercup hissed.
"Not alone. And since Bubbles and I don't want to go you're stuck here," Blossom replied.
"But I promised Elliot and Robin I would come over tonight!" Bubbles interrupted with a fib. She figured a promise sounded a lot more convincing than 'I really, really want to go'.
But of course, it didn't work. "Well, you should have thought about what I told you this morning before you promised them anything," Blossom responded, turning her stern look over to her blonde sister.
"But I promised them yesterday!" Bubbles whined, putting on her cutest pout. It never worked on Blossom, but who knows? There's a first time for everything.
"And I promised my biceps I would work on them today!" Buttercup added, mimicking Bubbles' pout.
Blossom groaned at her sisters' behavior. "You two aren't going to drop this, are you?"
"No!" both sisters exclaimed in unison. "And we'll bug you about it all night if you don't let us go!" Bubbles added.
Blossom sighed and paused, assessing her options. After a few moments she sighed. "Fine, Buttercup, you can go. But if you see any of the Ruffs, you are to come back here and get me, alright?"
"Aye aye, captain!" Buttercup exclaimed, a triumphant grin on her face. She threw up a mock salute to Blossom, grabbed her gym bag, and flew from the house in a light green blur.
"What about me?" Bubbles complained, stomping her foot on the carpeted floor of their living room. This was so typical. Buttercup got to do whatever she wanted, while Bubbles had to stay behind and be baby-sat. She could be just as tough as either of them! It was just plain unfair!
"Do you really need to go? I would feel better if you'd just stay here," Blossom said, throwing a concerned look to her sister. And at the harsh look she received, she just sighed again. "Fine, you can go too. But if Buttercup spots a Ruff, we're coming to get you. And if you see one, I want you to give them a sonic scream. As loud as you can make it. I'll be able to hear you from here,"
"Okay, Bloss," Bubbles replied. She had a huge grin on her face and she raced to pull on her light blue hoodie. "I love you!" she called back to her sister before racing out the door.
"I love you too. Stay safe," Blossom replied.
Goodness. That zombie movie was even worse the second time! Its title was The Horrors too, who were they kidding? She's seen scarier things in cartoons. It should be listed under comedies.
Her flight to Elliot's house had been uneventful, not a single Rowdyruff made an appearance. And of course they didn't show up while she was there enjoying hard candy and bad movies either.
So besides her better judgement, she decided to walk back home. It was a beautifully cool night. Why would she waste it by rushing back home like a chicken? She was halfway home and she hasn't seen a single other person out, let alone a villain.
"What are you doing out so late, Blue?" came a smooth, low voice from behind her.
Bubbles let out a high pitched yelp and quickly turned to face none other than Butch. He was standing a few feet behind her, grinning mischievously.
She froze. God, why did it have to be him? Why couldn't it have been Boomer? Heck, even Brick would have been better! But Butch? The toughest fighter of the Rowdyruff Boys? Buttercup's counterpart? She didn't know if she could hold her own in a fight against him. Maybe she should just let out a sonic scream now. Blossom would hear her and come to help…
No, she wasn't going to do that. How was she supposed to prove that she could take care of herself and hold her own if she called for help before she even tried to fight? Besides, he hasn't even attacked yet!
In fact, it didn't look like he was planning on attacking her at all. He was being too still for that. He looked relaxed, and he wasn't moving at all. Before he started fighting, he vibrated and got this insane, anxious look on his face. As if he couldn't wait to attack his victim.
He looked calm now, so she didn't think she needed to let out a sonic scream just yet. But that doesn't mean she wasn't on guard, ready to let one out at any time.
"Oh, me? I'm just out on a little walk," Bubbles replied, faking a sweet smile. "What are you doing in this part of town?"
"I'm out for a walk, the same as you," he said, mimicking her smile.
Bubbles almost laughed at that. She took a second to look him over. He was clad in a simple white t-shirt, jeans, and a leather jacket. His spikey hair was a wild mess, but it suited him. With the yellowish light of the street lamp behind them, his face was covered in shadows, and it made his eyes a very dark shade of green. He looked almost beautiful, in a dangerous, villainous sort of way. Like how you would imagine a Disney prince's evil brother would look. Beautiful, but twisted.
But of course, all three of the brothers looked like that. Beautifully twisted.
"Isn't that just great?" Bubbles laughed nervously, wanting desperately to leave. "Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to go home. You wouldn't believe how much homework I've got tonight," she replied lamely. Before he had a chance to reply, she was gone in a flash of blue.
"You're sure you didn't see any of them at the gym, Buttercup? Or on the way there?" Blossom asked from her spot on the living room couch.
"Nope," she replied, not looking away from her game. "The only thing of note I saw at the gym were some really attractive babes. I don't pick up chicks at a gym, but damn I was tempted. You should have seen this one girl,"
"I only wanted to know if you've seen any of the Rowdyruffs," Blossom interrupted, rolling her eyes playfully at her sister. "How about you, Bubbles?"
Instead of answering, she just let out a nervous laugh from her spot at the floor. She could feel both of her sisters turn to stare at her, but she avoided their gazes. After a minute she sighed and gave in. "I saw Butch on my way home,"
"You did what?!" both of her sisters demanded in unison.
Bubbles flinched lightly at their tone. "He didn't attack me or anything, which is why I didn't call for help! He just showed up out of nowhere when I was coming home! And he wasn't all fidgety like he is when we fight, so I just ran away!" she explained, still avoiding her sisters' faces.
Blossom sighed and Buttercup grumbled something under her breath that Bubbles had to fight not to hear.
"You need to be more careful, what if you had gotten hurt?" Blossom said.
"I know, I'm sorry," Bubbles mumbled. But honestly, she wasn't feeling too guilty. She had finally figured out who to use as the subject for her portrait.
Another chapter down! I'm sorry this one took me so long. Also the movie mentioned in this chapter, The Horrors, is based on a real zombie movie I've seen. It's terrible.
Next chapter we'll finally see Buttercup's electricity powers in action.
And I'd like to give a brief apology to everyone who has reviewed with requests for Buttercup/Butch, Bubbles/Boomer, and Brick/Blossom. I do appreciate your input and I did consider putting them in, but those ships just aren't my cup of tea. While this story might have touches (barely any) of romance, this story isn't going to be about romance. But I do value my reviewers' input and I hope you'll stick with this story even without those couples.
Thanks for reading!