Back at home, Gypsy was feeling tired, so she hopped into her bed in Candace's room and settled down, closing her eyes for a nap.
How had Perry put up with the agents like Kiki? Gypsy herself had not been able to even handle ONE, and yet Perry said most of O.W.C.A. had been like that? Maybe they were just so desperate to prove themselves with Perry as part of O.W.C.A...?
She tried to use that to work out why Kiki hated her.
I DID get in the way of her mission… But I really WAS only trying to help, and without my help, Rodrigo would have gotten away that much sooner. Well... He got away anyway, so you weren't MUCH help.
Gypsy exhaled sleepily. But it wasn't my fault that he got away. It was all of ours for standing around arguing instead of apprehending him straightaway.
She wasn't able to think about it anymore because after that thought, she fell asleep.
Perry smiled as he peered into the room to check on her. Since she arrived, she had become a little sister to him. He knew she was hiding something, but he honestly didn't even care. She would tell him when/if she was ready, and no matter what it was, he knew he would not hate her for it.
Perry sighed before walking away to get to bed himself.
But as he hopped into bed, he heard an unusual sound coming from the backyard, so he got up to see what the boys were up to. Sure enough, they were still outside with their friends. Their invention for the day was still there. Perry blinked as he stared up at the large structure. "Huh...that's a MASSIVE clock..."
Phineas grinned. "Do you think it'll be easier to tell the time now, Buford?"
Buford folded his arms stubbornly. "Sure, but this contraption doesn't teach anyone anything about tellin' the time."
"It certainly SHOWS the time very well," Baljeet chimed in. "I am sure that everybody in Danville can see this."
"What if we named it Big Bob?" Isabella suggested. "Then put him on a really tall pedestal? Danville's own Big Ben?"
"Big Bob?" scoffed Buford. "That's the dumbest name ever."
"Like you could come up with something better," Isabella shot back.
Buford thought for a minute. "Big John," he said eventually.
"After John P. Tristate," Phineas said approvingly. "Nice."
Isabella crossed her arms. "But what about alliteration?"
"Giant John," shrugged Buford.
Perry chuckled and walked back inside to leave the kids to their arguing. He headed to his own bed, tired out from the day. Pretty soon, he was also asleep.
…
Gypsy woke with a start. The room was dark. She glanced up at the clock and saw that it was two in the morning. She sighed and rolled over onto her back. That's what she got for going to bed so early. But she found it hard to go back to sleep, so eventually, she got up and went into the garden. She sat down on the ground and stared up at the stars. She felt flowers begin to grow under her hands and feet. Gypsy smiled and sighed. It was a strange feeling.
She reached out to touch the tree with her paw, and as she felt the bark under her touch, she saw leaves sprouting from some inner branches.
She wished she could tell Perry about this…
She could show Perry the beauty of her power. She could make roses grow through concrete. She could make ivy grow up the side of a building in seconds.
But... He'd think she was a freak.
Heck, at times, even Gypsy HERSELF thought she was a freak. And… Maybe she was.
Then she noticed a small tulip growing just under her right paw. She moved her paw aside and watched as the small flower grew from a stem to a bud to a full pink tulip. Gypsy smiled and rested her head on her paws.
Sometimes, her gift was beautiful. Even if it WAS a little freaky.
She had never wished her gift away, but...sometimes she wished she didn't have it just because she had to keep it from Perry. Gypsy didn't like keeping anything from him. HE always told HER everything. It made her feel like…a bit of a jerk. Even if this was a big secret. It was the biggest secret of her life, and nobody knew about it. And she wanted it to stay that way.
But at the same time, she wished with all her heart that Perry could know. She wanted it so much. But she was afraid of what he would think. What he would say. So for now, she had to keep her gift a secret.
It was best.
…
The next morning, Perry woke Gypsy up earlier than normal. Gypsy groaned; she had fallen asleep outside. "What is it, Perry?"
"You've been called in," Perry replied, frowning slightly. "Why are you outside?"
Gypsy shrugged. "I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep."
"Fair enough. Anyway, since you don't have a watch, Major Monogram just called me and said he wants you to go in."
"Alright." Gypsy yawned and stretched before getting up. "Not you too?" she asked.
Perry shook his head. "Nope. And I'm not sure why."
Gypsy suddenly felt nervous. "I-Is he going to tell me off for yesterday?"
"I doubt it," Perry reassured.
"H-Has Major Monogram called you in like this before?"
Perry paused. "I'm sure, but I've been part of O.W.C.A. so long, I don't really remember a specific time."
Gypsy sighed. "Well, I better not keep him waiting."
"Good luck," Perry smiled.
Gypsy smiled nervously back, before leaving the backyard.
She made it to O.W.C.A. in no time. The earth had given her the strength to run all the way there, despite the early hour.
Gypsy inhaled deeply when she made it to Major Monogram's office before knocking on the door. Before anyone answered, she spotted Kiki coming towards the corridor towards the office. She stepped back automatically as the fox glared at her.
"H-Hi," Gypsy said nervously.
Kiki crossed her arms and huffed.
Gypsy tried to speak again. "N-Nice day..."
Kiki glared at the ground, still not saying anything.
Gypsy took another step away from her, lest the fox suddenly attacked her.
Luckily, the door opened at that moment. Carl smiled down at the cat and fox. "Great. You're both here."
Gypsy gulped. Those three words didn't sound good...
"Come on in. Major Monogram was expecting you."
Gypsy waited until Kiki had gone in before following her. Major Monogram was seated behind his desk, and he looked up as they came in. Gypsy was too nervous to be able to meet his eyes.
Kiki, however, demanded, "why'd you call us in?"
Major Monogram sighed. "One thing that has been brought to my attention over the last week is that this organisation has a problem with teamwork."
Gypsy bowed her head. Kiki folded her arms and said nothing.
"And not just with you two," the Major continued. "For some reason, almost every agent here is struggling with it."
"With all due respect, sir, why did you choose us, then?" Gypsy asked shyly. "Out of all the agents in O.W.C.A., I mean."
Major Monogram raised an eyebrow. "Because Agent F needs to learn this probably the most, and you seem like a good candidate to help."
Gypsy didn't know whether to feel honoured or even more terrified, especially because Kiki was giving her the most epic glare ever.
"I want you two to work together. Be a team."
Kiki's eyes widened and Gypsy felt nausea rise in her throat, expecting the fox to argue vehemently.
She was not disappointed.
"Sir...!" Kiki immediately began to protest. "I have been doing PERFECTLY fine by myself for the past years...!"
"Until yesterday," Major Monogram reminded her.
"BECAUSE she distracted me!" Kiki snapped.
"She tried to help you," corrected Major Monogram. "If you had let her, Rodrigo probably wouldn't have gotten away."
Kiki snarled and said nothing.
Gypsy, on the other hand, raised her hand timidly. "S-Sir...I would love to do this, but...I think Kiki may kill me."
Major Monogram chuckled. "Don't worry. She won't."
Kiki darkly muttered something, glaring down at the ground.
Gypsy swallowed. "I...I think she might."
"Not as long as she's one of my agents, she won't."
Gypsy glanced across at Kiki, who huffed and stayed silent.
"Any other questions or objections?" Major Monogram asked.
Gypsy looked over at Kiki again, whose position hadn't changed. "I...don't think so, sir."
"Good. Then you're dismissed. I'm going to send Carl along to the gym later, and he better see you two training together."
"Wh-What time?" Gypsy asked.
"Later. Now leave."
Gypsy bit her lip. "Alright, sir. Of course."
The two agents left the room.