Newgarden Hills: Sometime in November.
Newgarden Hills was like any other suburban city in the United States. It had a small downtown area with a few shops and restaurants, a library, a post office, a supermarket, and a police station among others. The residential areas were made up of mostly single-family homes, with a few apartment complexes scattered around. The latest trends of big hair and leg warmers were just starting to settle in as the housing market was simple and cheap enough for anyone willing to start a family with a variety of homes to choose from, ranging from small starter homes to large family homes. And with the cost of living being relatively low, it was easy for young families to afford to buy a home in Newgarden Hills. But there was one thing that made this rather large town different from its neighbors, and it wasn't their unusual trademark for garbage or recycling, but something only some got the full story of.
Hiding in the shadows and away from the human eye, creatures with very special features lurked among the human race. You might mistake them for an average human child; they usually were the exact height, but something unexplainable made them different from humans.
Some had tentacle arms and eight eyes, some looked like animals with normal human bodies, and sometimes they didn't have a head; no one could exactly determine what these strange beings were as their forms never settled for one category, and many claimed their features were exaggerated by witnesses anyways. The people of Newgarden Hills all had different stories about their encounters with the childlike beings, and the same went for rumors and theories; many adults, especially the elderly, brushed off any mention of these beings and watered them down to "ghost stories that got out of hand", others swore on their grandmother's life they saw the little creatures and tried to spread the word, some thought they were aliens, some thought it had something to do with the government, the list went on and on. But there was one thing people agreed on; they were quite scared of what they could do and what their intentions were.
From the many encounters the New Garden Police Department heard, they all managed to fit into the same category of non-threatening reports. A group of the creatures filled in potholes in a neighborhood one night, one was spotted repairing a man's engine when he swore he thought the creature was trying to steal it, and another single-handedly regrew the community garden that was reported to be dead the day before; the only report they got of someone being attacked was from a burglar who broke into someone's house; and even then, the creatures were reported to have been seen fixing the broken widow he came in from. The good-natured creatures had a reputation of being the average law-abiding, kindhearted Samaritans, but that fact only made many terrified about why they were doing this and why they would run away once seen and confronted.
The police department, however, was unable to control these children, but they did discover a few clues in the hundreds of stories they received since the town's founding; one, the creatures were usually seen in the nighttime, rarely ever seen in broad daylight and when given the chance, stayed hidden in the shadows; two, they were all assumed to be children and even with a strict curfew being set for the residents for a while, no children of Newgarden Hills were reported to be out of their homes while the creatures continued to do their merry routines; and three, they had a strange connection with trash, often running and jumping into trash cans, dumpsters in back allies, or even piles of trash to escape confrontation and no matter how hard people dug through, the creatures just vanished without a trace.
For many decades, these creatures were assumed to be just an urban legend and that was that. But, just beyond the shadows, were the very creatures the humans were so horrified yet fascinated by. And one of them out at this time was just as intrigued.
In the town's junkyard, all was still at this time until a pile of trash started to shake, and out popped two beings. They soared a few feet into the air before landing safely on their feet, brushing themselves off any unnecessary pieces of garbage stuck to them. The two girls were not any normal little girls; they were the creatures the town feared and admired: The Garbage Pail Kids.
One of the two girls, named Trashed Traci, stretched her arms and prepared for another night of solving mundane problems. She had a "normal" human head with frail chunks of orange hair, two button eyes that were red and blue, and a bandage on the right side of her face. But that was about it for being considered normal as the rest of her body was made of second-hand parts; her torso was a yellow soup can, her legs were a spare boot and a plunger held together around her can with rope, and her arms were a torn doll hand and a plank with a white glove glued to the end.
Trashed Traci inhaled, taking in the disgusting smell of fresh garbage around the dump. Exhaling, she smiled a mile wide. "Boy, what a dump! Golly, I can't wait for what tonight will bring!"
Her companion, Michelle Muck, however, was adjusting a high-tech watch on her arm with a less-than-pleased expression on her face. The girl was a creature covered in raw sewage and catered with an assortment of trash on her body like banana peels, apple cores, and fish skeletons. She looked back at her partner with an annoyed expression. "Do you have to say that every night, Traci?"
Traci pouted and turned over to Michelle, her legs bent nervously. "What? I thought you liked hanging out with me and having fun every night."
"I do, Traci; it's just you say that same sentence every night like a broken record player," Michelle closed her watch, looking over to her lifelong companion. "But besides that- if I didn't like you, wouldn't I already have switched over to another partner already?" Michelle Muck asked and stepped forwards, placing her hand on Traci's "shoulder".
Trashed Traci smiled at her partner, who copied before challenging a more serious expression. "Anyways, we both know this isn't the time for us to fool around and play games, now do we? Trash Can Ken gave us specific orders to follow and complete by the end of tonight, and we both know we don't want to get on his bad side. We've been doing this same routine for millions of decades now, so I don't think I'm required to repeat the plan." Michelle further explained, reopening her watch and showing Traci a hologram of a long list of responsibilities.
"Gee, Trash Can Ken sure keeps us busy with these tasks!" Trashed Traci commented, letting out a low whistle.
"Yeah," Michelle replied a bit unenthusiastically. "But let's not waste any more time in this junkyard; unless you wanna get a reprimanded from the boss." Michelle Muck added as she walked over to the junkyard's exit. "Oh, I almost forgot: Traci, please try not talking to the humans tonight. No hellos, no waving at them, not even a second to take a glance; just stick to the shadows, okay?"
"I can't help it! It's always so fascinating how much humans have evolved after all these years; so many new trends have come and gone, and there's still more to come!" Traci sighed happily, clasping her hands together. "I wonder if we'll see anything new tonight!"
"I doubt it," Michelle said, wrapping her hand around Traci's tincan waist. "But you best keep an eye out if you do, okay?"
Trashed Traci nodded and pecked Michelle on the cheek, giggling at her partner's cheeks reddening as they sneakily made their way out of the junkyard. "Aye aye, ma'am. Always a pleasure to be at your side."
The night went on as Trashed Traci and Michelle Muck ventured throughout the town of Newgarden Hills completing their duties. For hours, they did simple tasks like retrieving lost items stuck in rain drains, repairing broken cars, delivering missing items and giving them back to their original owners, and fixing small stuff no one paid close attention to. Apart from bumping into other Garbage Pailers doing their assigned tasks, nothing out of the ordinary piqued the girls' interest.
As Michelle and Traci completed more and more tasks on their list, Traci's hopes of finding something unique were slowly starting to fade.
"You'd think after so many years of evolving they'd be able to solve all these small problems without our help!" Michelle Muck remarked, picking up a diamond ring from a trash bag. Inspecting it, she was able to scan the ring to identify its owner before stuffing it into her back pocket. "Like, who'd even forget this gem in an alleyway? I'm starting to think they're doing this on purpose."
"Ah, that's a human for you! They might've made the greatest inventions and conquered many nations, but they're still receptive to making silly mistakes like any living creature." Trashed Traci replied with a smile.
"Makes you think how they would've survived this long without us." Michelle Muck added with snark.
The two Garbage Pailers were now digging through several back alleys looking for spare parts for their headquarters: the last mission for them for the night. Trashed Traci, having a stroke of luck finding useful metals and parts in the trash humans threw away, kept storing more and more junk in her can. "But we can at least be grateful for all the great trash they throw away for us to fix our machines. We'll give it a new purpose under our care; like they say, one person's trash is another person's treasure!"
"Blech!" Michelle Muck, on the other hand, wasn't having the best luck. All the bags she dug into were filled with moldy food and other disgusting juices, each harder for her not to hurl her lunch. "Easy for you to say! Whoever came up with that saying, I'm pretty sure they never dug their hand in a dumpster before."
Hopping out of the dumpster, Michelle Muck walked past Traci. "I'm gonna check another alley for any useful junk before we head back. Don't wander off until I say you can come."
"I won't!" Trashed Traci replied, admiring a tin can like it was one of the seven wonders of the world.
Michelle Muck made sure to stick to the shadows as she crept her way to the last alleyway of their assigned street. It was a brisk night in the middle of November, the air having a familiar dewy scent from a shower hours before. No fool would wander off in the streets with no coat at this hour, even Michelle felt a shiver walking towards the alley.
She ducked into the back alley and searched efficiently and quickly through all the bags and cans for what felt like hours. Like the other back alleys she had searched, it was mostly moldy food, plastic bags, and old newspapers—all common pieces of trash, none of which were as valuable as other metals and glass for fuel.
Michelle Muck grumbled to herself as she tossed aside heaps of garbage, searching for anything of value. "After all these centuries of working for him, this is what I get? Scavenging through dumpsters like a hobo!" She paused for a moment and reflected on how her life had come to this: digging through a back alley like a helpless addict when she could have been so much more.
She reminisced on the days long ago; the days when she recruited those worthy of being Garbage Pail Kids and serving as their mentor were bittersweet upon nostalgically looking back. It had been so long since she last recruited a Garbage Pail Kid, to the point where she, and many others like Trashed Traci, were forced to relocate once the recruitment rate dropped by over forty-seven percent in their respective areas. While there were still hundreds of millions of Garbage Pail Kids in the world and spread across many populated areas, it was only a matter of time before all the wanted spots were taken, leaving many to get areas like the one Michelle was in; so densely lacking in major problems and newer kids to train that many started their own problems to keep themselves busy. Trash Can Ken had little to no power over this conundrum, saying he couldn't control who was a Garbage Pail Kid and who wasn't. The man was all bark and no bite when it came to situations like this; Michelle had mixed feelings about her boss. On one hand, he was the one who saved them eons ago from near extinction and gave the strange beings a purpose with their odd powers, but on the other hand, he was firm with sticking to tradition and following these megayear-long rules and wasn't willing to hear others out on something he set into stone. For someone who can just materialize anything into existence and back, it was quite strange he hadn't used these powers more to do something to benefit the lives of his employees. And despite the hundreds upon hundreds of children in this town, there were only under six dozen Garbage Pail Kids in the entire town compared to four hundred at minimum in every other area. Had the Garbage Pail gene simply disappeared in this specific town after so many decades?
Grumbling as she dug through more bags, Michelle's patience was thinning as her temper rose after opening one bag after another and finding nothing of use. She'd picked up a bottle, which she thought was a great use for the glass department, but looking at it closer revealed to be just a cheap plastic bottle: something the headquarters never ran out of.
Scowling, Michelle threw the bottle at a disregarded dumpster tucked in the shady corner, letting out a fierce cry to the sky. "You know what? I've had it! I'd do anything to get rid of these lackluster duties! Anything, you hear me!?"
For a few moments, Michelle glared at the sky until she saw a twinkling star above. She gasped, taking the chance as she quickly brought her hands together to pray. "Star light, star bright. First star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might give myself a new purpose starting tonight!" She looked above at the star with hope, before realizing it was just an airplane. Michelle Muck let out a defeated sigh and slowly walked away.
Just as she was about to step away from the darkness of the alleyway, she looked back at the dumpster as she growled, kicking a can that hit it.
froze once she heard something not so far away where she stood; a wail of a crying baby. Gasping, Michelle scrambled behind a few trash cans and covered her mouth. Peaking through the gap between the garbage cans, Michelle quickly realized no one was walking down this street, not even a baby in a stroller.
"Huh?" Getting back up, she stared ahead in confusion. The street was dead quiet, no one was out on either side, left or right. It was eerily quiet compared to the busy sounds of the morning. Scratching the back of her head, she heard the wail again; sounding more desperate, helpless, and closer than before. Michelle quickly determined the crying was coming from the alley behind her.
Gulping, Michelle crept over until she was right where the crying was coming from: the dumpster.
"W-who's there?" Michelle Muck whispered, holding her hands in front of her with endless amounts of magic ready to be used to defend herself. "Hello? Anyone?"
The wailing continued as a large, unsure knot began to tie in Michelle Muck's stomach. She didn't only hear one fearful cry, but a few others started to appear as well. With a shaky stance, she climbed onto the dumpster and peered inside, letting out a loud horrified gasp after a few seconds.
Nestled inside the dumpster alongside a few garbage bags were babies; five, small and defenseless babies wearing cheap cloth diapers and hospital wristbands. Two of them were girls, two of them were boys, and the other one was unknown to Michelle.
The amount of shock Michelle Muck was hit with was enough to send her falling back onto the ground, staring into space at a loss of words. Michelle shook her head, not believing what she saw was the truth. Picking herself back up, she again peered inside to expect a broken babydoll or her mind playing tricks. But to her dismay, the five infants were still cooped up beside bags of garbage, now having stopped their tearful wails to stare curiously at the stranger above.
"Holy macaroni," Michelle couldn't take her eyes off the poor souls beneath her as her heart and mind raced with worry. Who could do such a thing, throwing away these innocent babies like they were trash and waiting to be discarded as such? The babies, however, only gurgled and giggled back, blissfully unaware of the predicaments they were unfortunately in. They reached out their tiny hands to Michelle Muck as the overwhelming feeling of uncertainty washed over her. Five lives were now in her hands, and she had little to no idea what to do first.
"Hey! When I wished for a new purpose, I-I didn't exactly mean this!" Michelle Muck called out before feeling someone tap her shoulder. Quickly turning around with her hands up in defense, she, once again, sighed in relief upon seeing Trashed Traci.
"God, Traci; you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Michelle Muck said, holding her beating chest.
Trashed Traci asked, "Sorry! I was wondering what was taking you so long. Did you find anything useful?"
"Well, sort of..?" Michelle Muck shrugged which earned her a confused look from Trashed Traci. She cocked her head to the side before hearing the same cries Michelle heard inside the dumpster. Peeking her head inside, Trashed Traci gasped.
"Oh my goodness!"
"I know, I mean- what kind of monster would just leave five babies in a dumpster in this kind of weather-?" Michelle asked before her partner-in-crime cut her off.
"No, not that!" Trashed Traci interjected, before pausing and shaking her head. "I mean, while that is an important issue here right now, there is something even worse about those babies!"
"What could be worse than someone leaving five helpless infants in a dumpster?" Michelle Muck asked hands on her hips with a stern expression.
Hesitating, Trashed Traci took a deep breath and laid it out for her partner. "Michelle, I think those babies in there are… reclaimers."
All the color on Michelle Muck's face washed away as the words settled into her mind. Her hands dropped to her thighs, her pupils shrunk in horror. She finally broke the silence after a minute or two, her voice barely above a whisper, "You're kidding, right?"
"Take a look for yourself." Trashed Traci stepped out of the way for Michelle Muck to climb up to peer inside. It was only a second, a second to take in what she saw and she felt as if she wanted to fall again. The five babies, once looking like normal human children, now had seemingly transformed once they were out of the darkness.
One of the girls, who had light skin and a blonde afro, was stretching her face to impossible levels of elasticity like something Michelle read from a 'Fantastic Four" comic. The other girl, who had dark brown hair and tan skin, was missing her face. Michelle's eyes widened once she saw the baby girl's face on her hand, sucking her other hand's thumb casually. "I don't believe what I'm seeing.."
"Me neither. It's quite unusual to see a Reclaimer after so many years of doing boring tasks." Trashed Traci added. She was eyeing the other babies. One of the boys, of African American descent, was melting like an overworked candle; the other boy, of Hispanic descent with curly auburn hair, had all of his pieces scattered around the place like a Potato Head doll. The last baby looked the most normal, with brown hair and blue eyes. However, that was only on one half; the other half had a red and green mohawk, a red eye, and a few scars and stitches on their cheek.
The girls picked up the children from the dumpster and inspected them for any sign of where they came from. Their diapers were clean and there was no sign of any physical injury, so they couldn't have been there that long: possibly an hour or so before Traci and Michelle arrived. But there was still one big question floating between the two; was this a group effort? Were all these babies kidnapped?
"It wouldn't be far off that they were put here because their parents were ashamed of their Reclaimer genes," Michelle Muck stated. "Most Reclaimer Garbage Pail Kids are abandoned by their parents to be left for dead, sometimes due to religious beliefs or fear of being ostracized for their children's appearances. Not saying any of that is right, but it was extremely common back then."
"That's horrible.. but it's kinda hard to think five families had children at the same time and abandoned them in the same place." Trashed Traci replied before noticing the tiny hospital bands on the babies. "Huh?"
She inspected one of the young girls with dark-brown hair and read the markings on the tag aloud.
"Subject 00023
D/O/B: 7/21/-
Sex: Female
Status: Defective. Does not meet criteria–to be discarded.
Property of F.U.N.B.U.S.T.E.R.S
Facility
Utilizing
Newborns
to be Born
and Unleash
Superlicious
Terror
and Eventually
Rule
Society"
"That's an acronym?" Trashed Traci exclaimed in disbelief. "It sounds more like a statement." She had heard a few strange acronyms in her many years of life, but this had to be the dumbest one. She turned to Michelle Muck, holding up the tag. "Have you ever heard of them before?"
Michelle Muck shook her head. "Nope, but even if it's lengthy, it's still something we must report to Trash Can Ken right away," said Michelle Muck as the two began to walk away from the dumpster. Their fearful eyes met the children's fearful eyes, all of them scared and unsure of what to do next.
"Looks like these F.U.N.B.U.S.T.E.R.S were trying to make their own Garbage Pail Kids to take over the world.." Michelle Muck guessed, feeling sick to her stomach upon saying that aloud.
The two tried to keep the babies under control but considering their rather extraordinary powers made it somewhat of a challenge. The stretchy girl was trying to escape from Traci's grasp while another was trying to melt in Michelle Muck's arms, all the while they were all giggling joyfully as infants do.
"Jeez, now I know why we don't have many baby recruits in our organization," Trashed Traci mumbled. "These five are already giving me a headache with their powers!"
"Yeah, my head's killing me. I don't know who's making that weird whining noise, but I feel like my head's going to explode if it continues." Michelle Muck groaned. The sound she heard was a loud, piercing cry, but it didn't sound like someone crying: it was more like a siren. And it was getting closer.
"Do.. Do you hear that?" Trashed Traci murmured sirens were just a block away.
"Crap..!" Michelle Muck backed away from the alleyway's exit, hearing the sirens right around the corner. "Police officers!"
"W-What should we do?" Trashed Traci asked, looking down at the babies in their possession. "Maybe they can help us with these children? They can help us find their parents or something!"
"Uh, hello? Did you forget who we are? We're GARBAGE PAIL KIDS! We're not exactly that well-liked or well-known by the cops; if they see us with these kids, they're either gonna think we're kidnapping them, try to arrest us, shoot us, or all of the above! And I do not want any of us to go down in the Garbage Pail Kid history books as the ones who screwed up the organization because we couldn't be quiet!" Michelle Muck argued. She was already getting flashbacks to the summer of 1935; several cities had found traces of their existence and alleged stories of humans capturing many of the children, forcing them into a nearly decade-long hiding. It was disastrous on both sides, and Michelle dreaded the idea of that horrible event repeating as history does at times.
Scrambling for any ideas, Michelle spotted a garbage can without a lid. "Follow me!" she said before jumping inside the trash can with the infants.
"Police! You got nowhere to run!"
Trashed Traci gulped, her legs frozen in place. She'd always been fascinated with humans, of course, but the idea of being in the presence of a police officer with deadly weapons made her blood run cold in terror. She eventually snapped out of it once she heard the police car's door slam shut and footsteps came closer, scrambling over to the garbage can but not without tripping a couple of times due to the wet ground. Thankfully, she picked herself up before the police officers came around the corner.
Two officers, a male and female, were holding their flashlights and aimed them at the alleyway. The woman, Officer Kennedy, had a slim figure with dark brown hair and fair skin, while her partner, Officer McAfee, had blonde hair and a round figure with a slight goatee growing on his chin. The two scanned the area before spotting something near a garbage can; one of the infants, now having their punk side removed.
"Well, hey there little fella," Officer McAfee cooed, picking up the four-month-old from the pile of trash. "Whatcha doing here this late in an alleyway?" The infant stared at the man holding them and began to wail and flail their arms around helplessly. Officer McAfee responded by holding the infant close to his chest, the only warmth they felt in the last couple of hours. Every bit of Officer McAfee's heart was shattered into pieces as he bounced the baby lightly to calm them down while Officer Kennedy radioed in using their police radio.
"We got a 271 in the back alley of Maple Drive," Officer Kennedy reported as she walked back to her vehicle. "The report of people screaming here was from a baby. The child is around 4 months old, has light-brown hair, and is Caucasian. No sign of any suspect in the alleyway; additionally, no sign of any exit either."
"Any signs of injury?" Another voice replied through the radio.
"I assume the baby's been here for at least a few hours. Worse case, he could have hypothermia or get a cold," Officer McAfee added, walking alongside his partner with the now-sleeping baby in his arms. "But apart from that, he seems to be in stable condition."
Officer McAfee looked at Officer Kennedy with a worried expression after she finished reporting. It was just his first week on the job, and he had never expected anything this insane to happen on duty. "I'm just used to giving out tickets every once in a while, but I never imagined this to happen to me," he said aloud.
"Hey, you can never expect the unexpected not to happen when you're a cop," Officer Kennedy chuckled.
But Officer McAfee's eyes were locked on the baby, worry developing in his gut. Being a father of four himself, he felt the same dread as if he were holding his own, worrying about every small thing a father could come up with a brand-new infant. The baby's skin was so pale, and his eyes were closed tightly. They looked so fragile, and Officer McAfee couldn't help but feel like he was going to break.
"What's going to happen to the kid?" he asked his partner. "We can't just leave him like this!"
"Relax, Greg," Officer Kennedy replied, getting into the driver's seat and buckling herself in. Officer McAfee also got into the car, still cradling the now-sleeping infant as he buckled himself in. "Once the kid gets the proper medical treatment, Child and Family Services will take custody and try to find the baby's parents. But, if they can't find them, the poor thing will likely be in foster care."
The baby's head lolled back, and their eyes fluttered open for a moment. They looked up at Officer McAfee with big, blue eyes. "Bababa…" The baby babbled as they gnawed on their knuckles.
"It's okay, little guy," Officer McAfee said. "We're going to take care of you."
Officer Kennedy, on the other hand, shook her head in disbelief as the pair drove to the nearest hospital. She muttered to herself as she stared out her window. "Man, poor kid. What a way to start a life."
Back at the New Garden Hills Junkyard, Michelle and Traci were at their personal headquarters/control center with the four infants thanks to the built-in tubes in the town's many garbage cans. While Trashed Traci was trying to calm down the four crying infants, Michelle Muck was desperately trying to get in contact with her boss. Considering he was a busy man, she could at least have some hope she'd get into contact with one of his secretaries.
"Michelle, how much longer until you get a hold of the boss?" Trashed Traci called out from another room as Michelle heard several things breaking and shattering. Traci's voice was in a frantic state, hearing her second-hand parts run about. "These babies are driving me nuts!"
"Just give me a second, Traci!" Michelle Muck called back, pressing several buttons in an attempt to reach her boss. "Try and keep them busy until I can get in contact with Trash Can Ken!"
"What do you think I'm doing? I'll say, these kids are–hey, no! Don't do that!" Trashed Traci yelled before another pile of junk collapsed on the floor, causing more ruckus. Michelle Muck sighed and shook her head as she resumed trying to get in contact with the organization. After a couple more minutes, she finally entered the right password and the screen began to load.
The control center screen then buzzed with static for a moment before a girl appeared onscreen. She had a black bob topped with a little blue bow, wore a blue scientist coat that covered a pink dress, and was wearing glasses. Her head was gigantic, and her brain was even larger; it was so big that it took up most of her head, and it was covered with the folds of her brain. She looked like a genius, and she probably was.
"You're speaking to Secretary Brainy Janie," the girl said. "Please state your name, location, and the purpose of your call."
Michelle Muck let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness you picked up, Brainy Janie! We're were in a real sticky situation here, and I was worried I couldn't get a hold-"
"Name." Brainy Janie reiterated. Her no-nonsense tone quickly advised Michelle to cut short making small talk to not embarrass herself even more in front of one of her bosses' high-ranked secretaries.
Letting out a nervous chuckle, Michelle Muck quickly recovered and cleared her throat. "U-uh.. Michelle Muck. Member of Sector 874932-OA2."
Brainy Janie's stern expression softened as she typed in the information on her computer. "Okay, and what's the purpose of your call?"
"I need to speak to Trash Can Ken as soon as possible," Michelle Muck pleaded. "Please, it's a matter only he can understand!"
Brainy Janie let out a tired sigh as she massaged her aching, enormous forehead. "Michelle Muck, how many times have I gone through this with you? Trash Can Ken is a very busy man; you can't just ask me to get his attention at the drop of a dime."
"I understand where you're coming from," Michelle Muck nodded, slightly apprehensive. She twirled her thumbs as she continued her statement. "I know my track record hasn't been… the cleanest with reporting problems… or the reporting the most important ones, but I'm serious this time!"
Brainy Janie was unmoved by Michelle Muck's defense. Instead, she turned around in her swivel chair and opened a file cabinet. Flipping through several folders, she slammed a large beige file overstuffed with papers and slips onto her desk. Michelle Muck gulped, sweating profusely as she knew whose document was.
"Do you know whose file this is?" Brainy Janie questioned with an agitated tone, getting a nervous nod from the living pile of sewage. "This file is yours, Michelle, and filled with all the misreports and mistakes you've made regarding handling reporting major problems."
"To be completely honest, I-I thought it'd be a bit bigger." Michelle Muck admitted.
"Oh, it is," Brainy Janie cleared up. "This isn't even covering a century; it's under a decade. The rest of your misreports are in a gigantic storage unit dedicated for you, and only you."
Michelle Muck's face became sour. "Terrific…"
"Anyways, saying your record hasn't been the cleanest is like saying the Empire State Building isn't that tall; it's obvious to us both, and I shouldn't have to keep reminding you of this fact," Brainy Janie stated, opening the overcrowded document by untying the rope holding it all together. Several of the papers flew out from the freedom of force, making Michelle more nervous. "You have quite the habit of reporting small problems when there are bigger issues at the fold; the day you demanded Trash Can Ken help when farmers' crops died from a drought, the Great Chicago Fire happened. When you insisted the group of the strongest and bravest Garbage Pail Kids assist with unblocking a highway near a mountain, John F. Kennedy went into an early grave because they weren't there to keep a lookout! And I don't even need to get into what caused the disaster that was the Great Molasses Flood of 1919."
"Wow, you can remember all those events like that?"
"Photogenic memory, dear. Comes in handy at times like this," Brainy Janie stated, tapping her rather large head proudly before settling back into her more serious expression. "But besides that, I've since noticed a pattern with you and disasters like these, and I'm getting tired of it. I do not want another disaster to become out of control because of your reckless use of reporting; that's a very clear reason why your duties have been reduced to more…manageable ones."
"Janie, please! I promise this time it's serious! You just have to listen to what I need to say!" Michelle Muck protested, using her hands to express her dire situation.
"Oh, I've heard enough from you tonight, Michelle Muck. Consider this another mark on your permanent record for wasting valuable time for emergencies-" But before Brainy Janie could continue to scold Michelle Muck, the racket offscreen which Brainy Janie had somehow not noticed became unbearable to ignore any longer, even to Michelle. Glass was shattering, metal fell to the floor, all the while panicked cries for someone to stop were heard alongside the cheerful laughter of babies.
"Okay, WHAT is that ruckus?" Brainy Janie demanded. But before Michelle could explain the situation, Trashed Traci filled her in by stumbling with the four infants on screen. She bumped into her partner, sending them both to the ground along with the infants. When the dust cleared up, the two were lying on the ground as the infants laughed and laughed.
Brainy Janie adjusted her glasses as she looked closer at the babies. She was less than pleased with the sudden introduction. "Michelle Muck, Trashed Traci, you better have a good explanation as to why you have four infants with you."
"Wait, four? I thought you said there were five babies?" Trashed Traci whispered and turned over to Michelle Muck with a worried expression.
Michelle Muck brushed aside Traci's comment and continued to speak. "Miss Janie, while I apologize for my partner's… grand entrance, the reason why we have these babies is that… we think they might be Reclaimers!"
"...I beg your pardon?" Brainy Janie now had all of her attention on the two, furrowing her brow. "Did you just say… Reclaimers?"
"Yes!" Trashed Traci replied before stammering over her words. "That's what I've been trying to tell you! And we believe someone, or some company, was trying to make their own Garbage Pail Kids to rule the world, or take over society with genetically created Garbage Pail Kids! But, unfortunately, or fortunately for these guys, they were thrown into a dumpster to rot away for being "defective"..."
There was an uncomfortable amount of silence between Brainy Janie and the girls for a whole, with only the sounds of the babies cooing being heard. It was only when Brainy Janie cleared her throat was when the girls got an actual answer from the genius.
"Michelle, I apologize for my previous statements. I will contact Trash Can Ken immediately and get this sorted out. Please stay on hold." And then the screen fizzed out with static.
"Are you sure we're making the right decision, Michelle?"
"If Trash Can Ken approves our request, then it's sure to be a good idea. He'd never lie about a situation this dire."
It was roughly a few hours until morning and both Trashed Traci and Michelle Muck were walking side by side with the remaining four infants through a neighborhood. Pulling them in rusty wagons from the junkyard tied together with a rope, the girls inspected each address of the houses for the right home.
"But, leaving them with these strangers? Wouldn't it just be easier to raise them on our own, or give them to the police station?" Trashed Traci asked, nervously looking back at the infants sucking on their toes.
Michelle Muck sighed, shaking her head. "Traci, you think the two of us could raise four Garbage Pail Kids with unknowable powers at hand with no money or a home? I can barely take care of myself, let alone the two of us, so how do you think it'd work with four younger beings at our hands?"
"Besides," Michelle Muck continued, keeping an eye out for the addresses. "The children tested positive for the Reclaimer gene even if they are genetically made. While they are technically Garbage Pail Kids, they deserve to be with humans to raise them until they're old enough to start noticing and questioning their powers. Then we'll start training them and preparing them for their duties. It's better than just leaving them rotting in that dumpster or raising them in the junkyard for the rest of their lives," She paused and looked back at the infants' odd appearances by human standards. She winced at their innocence, forcing herself to take her eyes away. "If we leave them like that, they'll be rejected: just like we were when we arrived. Humans aren't used to strange, incomprehensible abnormalities like us; it's why we lurk in the shadows and refrain from communicating with them, to keep ourselves and them safe. We have to give them the chance to fit in with the humans of this world; it's only fair."
Trashed Traci bit her lip, but solemnly nodded as the two finally reached their first destination; a quaint two-story home painted pale peach and with maroon roof tiles. All the lights were out and it was dead quiet.
"Looks like we're at the first address." whispered Michelle before adding, "Grab me the baby boy with auburn hair. And don't mess anything up."
Trashed Traci reluctantly walked over and picked up the infant, but noticed his head had switched places with his right leg, as well as his other limbs scattered around the place. She gasped, nearly dropping the infant in surprise, before retaining her balance and holding tightly onto the infant. The baby only giggled in response, already proving to Traci he was going to be a handful. "Uh, I think I already messed up; his parts are all in the wrong places!"
Michelle Muck sighed before gently pushing Trashed Traci to the side as she fidgeted with her watch. "Hold on, let me try something."
Aiming it at the infant boy, a bright light enveloped his entire small body until he was pure white light. There, the two could watch the magic work as the right parts of his body were put back into their rightful places, apart from him missing his left leg. The light soon disappeared and a cheerful light-tanned-skinned boy looked up at them as he sucked his thumb, oblivious to the changes made. "There we go, that looks normal enough." Michelle Muck sighed in relief, cradling the newborn and creeping up to the front porch.
"Hold on a second, how did you just do that?" Trashed Traci whispered. "Did you just erase his powers?"
"I didn't erase them, Traci. It's impossible to do that," Michelle Muck replied. "Trash Can Ken gave me a bit of his magic for this purpose only, I just changed his appearance slightly. He still has his powers, but they won't appear until he gets a little older,"
Following behind, Trashed Traci was still appalled and dying for answers. "So, we're just abandoning them and giving them to total strangers?" She asked as Michelle Muck carefully placed the boy on the second last step of the porch. "And you said leaving them in the dump was a horrible decision; how is this the better alternative?"
"Did you not hear what we've been saying the last hour? We're giving them a chance to live normal lives," Michelle Muck retorted, picking up a paper from one of her pockets. She clipped the note with a paperclip in her gunk, as the infant happily giggled at her. "And no, we're not that stupid to give them to random humans; Trash Ken Can checked their records and they're suitable for taking care of the children."
"But, why these people? What makes them so different from any other human being in this town?" Trashed Traci asked.
"These people… well, I'll show what I mean."
"And how are you gonna do that?"
"Like this." Michelle rang the doorbell a dozen times, then dashed to where the other three babies were to hide behind a trash can. Traci was so surprised by her friend's sudden actions that she had no time to say anything before she noticed the lights inside started turning on one by one. Gasping, she ran over to where her partner was and nestled beside her, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.
"W-was that necessary-" Trashed Tracy began to ask before Michelle Muck pressed a finger to Traci's mouth, shushing her. Traci wanted to retaliate, but Michelle stopped her once more by whispering "Look," and pointing where the baby was. Traci, abiding a bit skeptical, willingly peered around the bush to get a better look.
The front door opened, revealing a fair-skinned lady in her late twenties with blonde hair and a curvy pear figure. She was wearing a purple and green robe and fluffy pink slippers and looked like she'd nearly fallen down the stairs from the commotion earlier.
"Hello?" The woman called out before letting out a yawn. Smacking her lips, she looked to her left and right to find nothing unusual. The lady sighed with a displeased expression on her face, though the girls had a hard time configuring if it was her being woken up or something unrelated.
"I swear if someone tried to ding-dong ditch me at this hour-" But before she could close the door and head back to bed, she heard the terrified wailing of a baby. The door was halfway closed and it immediately shot back open as the woman looked around again frantically with a more alert expression.
"What in the name of-" Then the lady decided to look down and she cried out, "Oh my god!" There, nestled and wailing at the top of his lungs on her front porch, was a baby. She immediately crouched and carefully scooped up the child, her mouth agape and her eyes the size of saucers.
"H-honey! Otto, come quick!" The woman shouted as she kept her eyes on the precious child in her grasp, still crying his lungs out. She rocked the infant to soothe him down as another person came into view; a man in his early thirties who had ginger hair with a stubble, round body, and wearing a yellow and blue robe, which the girls assumed was Harvey.
"Beth, are you alright?" Otto called out, a sense of worry in his tone. He ran over to the doorway, keeping a tight grip on the doorframe as he took in short breaths from running downstairs. "Did those hooligans down the curb do something to our house? Oh, I swear if they laid a finger on the new car, I- " Harvey stopped mid-way through his tirade, his jaw dropping seeing his wife with a soft, tired expression cradling a baby on the front step. His eyes met the infant boy below, and both were just as curious as to who the other was.
After a moment, he managed to get a sentence out. "You're.. you're holding a baby.."
Beth raised a brow along with a small smirk. "Good eye, Otto.."
"B-but, how did… how.." Otto sat down on the porch next to Beth, still not drawing his eyes away from the infant. He held his hands on his head, feeling like it was about to explode. But despite the hundreds of questions developing in his mind, only one could come through. "...How did this happen?"
"I-I don't know. The doorbell rang and I came downstairs, and there's this baby on the porch." Beth explained before noticing something clipped to the baby's diaper. "What's this?"
Beth unclipped it from the baby's diaper, managing to open it and read it. After scanning the note, she gasped in shock as her eyes widened with disbelief. She quickly turned to her husband, who had a bewildered expression. "Beth, are you alright? What's wrong?"
In response, Beth said, "Please read it.". As tears rolled down her face, Otto noticed that she didn't sound upset; instead, she was smiling as tears rolled down her cheeks. After unfolding the note, he read it aloud.
"Dear Mr. and Mrs. Mechlowitz,
Good evening. I hope this letter finds you both in good health and high spirits. You may not know who I am, but I assure you I mean no harm. The gift I gave you will fill your heart with warmth and joy as well.
As you know, life has not been without its challenges for both of you, particularly in the realm of expanding your family. I can't imagine what you two have been through these last few years; the pain of experiencing miscarriages and, more recently, dealing with infertility has undoubtedly tested your strength and resilience. It must've felt like your entire world fell apart; I know how badly you two wanted to start a family together, to have beautiful children and see them grow up. But, throughout these difficult times, you have demonstrated unwavering love and support for each other, which has been truly inspiring to witness.
I understand that this revelation might be overwhelming and filled with questions. Who are we and how did we know about your situation? While we may never have all the answers, the most important thing is that your family will be taken care of raising this boy. All expenses will be paid to support you raising him, documents like a birth certificate have been taken care of, and people who knew you didn't have a child will now remember you do now; all that's left is for you to give him the love he deserves.
We do not doubt that you will provide this child with all the love and care he deserves, just as you have supported each other through all your trials. Your home, filled with love and warmth, is the perfect place for this little one to grow and thrive. If there's anything we can do to support you during this time or if you need assistance with any arrangements, we'll be keeping an eye out for your precious baby boy at any time of any day.
Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Mechlowitz. Your family has grown most unexpectedly and beautifully, and I believe this child will bring you the happiness you deserve after going through so much.
With warmest regards,
TCK."
"He's… he's ours..?" Otto Mechlowitz lowered the note from his face, staring at Beth as tears developed in his green eyes. "We… we have a son…"
"Yes, he's our baby. Our precious little …Elliot…" Beth cupped his cheek, wiping away tears that fell from Otto's face.
"Elliot…" Otto repeated, looking down at his now infant son; he couldn't help but let Elliot hold his pointer finger with his tiny hand. "Named him after your grandfather, huh? That's a perfect name, honey.."
"Only the best for our baby," Beth replied. The Mechlowitz family, now three strong, got up and went inside with smiles on their faces. While Mr. and Mrs. Mechlowitz were somewhat concerned and unsettled by the note, their joy at the prospect of becoming the parents they had always wanted overshadowed any other feelings.
After Otto closed the door, Michelle Muck let out a sigh of relief before getting back up. "Come on," she said as she pulled Trashed Traci to her feet. "We still got three babies left to deliver."
"Alright, let's get going then," Trashed Traci replied. As Michelle Muck walked away with the three remaining babies, Trashed Traci stopped to listen to the Mechlowitz couple talking about a nursery that had appeared out of nowhere. The nursery was complete with a crib, changing table, dresser, rocking chair, and even toys and clothes for the babies; even though the couple knew all of that stuff they once had was given to close friends and family who were expecting children when they couldn't. Trashed Traci knew who had brought the nursery, though, as she saw a couple of Garbage Pail Kids sneaking away into the shadows behind the house.
She giggled as she caught up with Michelle and said to herself, "We Garbage Pail Kids sure know how to do a baby shower."
Two blocks away, Trashed Traci and Michelle Muck made their way over to a rather large, three-story, gable-fronted structure with a bright yellow exterior that reminded one of a field of sunflowers. It also had two large garages and a tire swing in the front yard.
"My goodness, this place is enormous!" Trashed Traci exclaimed. She saw a few toys and bikes strewn about the front yard, as well as a few frisbees on the roof and a used basketball hoop on top of the garage. "Huh, looks like this family has a few kids of their own. Young ones to be exact!"
Michelle Muck smiled warmly at the baby in her arms, noting his dark tan skin, small black afro, heterochromia, and the biggest smile she had ever seen. "Looks like they're at least a little prepared for this baby," she said. Before, the baby boy was melting like a popsicle in a heat wave but thankfully, she used her magic to hide away his powers for the meantime.
Leaving him on the doorstep, they rang the doorbell at least twelve times before hiding behind the tree in the front yard. After a moment of silence broken only by the chirping of crickets, the front door opened to reveal a pair of people: a buxom woman in her early thirties of African-American descent wearing a magenta bonnet and a matching purple nightgown, and a wide man, also African-American, with a neatly trimmed fade and a matching broom mustache, who was dressed in football-patterned pajamas.
"What in the name of all that's good rings our doorbell at one in the morning?" The man asked aloud, looking around the area. He looked grumpy considering the time he was rudely awoken, but that anger soon disappeared once he heard his wife gasp.
"Duane, look!" The lady pointed down and the man gasped seeing the infant lying in a basket on their front steps. Crouching down, they scooped the infant and noticed a note clipped to his diaper.
"To the family of Mr. Duane Eugune Rogers and Mrs. Melissa Crassus-Rogers,
I hope this letter finds you in good health and spirits. Though we have never met, I am compelled to write to you on account of the extraordinary circumstances that have unfolded in your lives as of now. The burdens of fate have a unique way of bringing individuals together, even those who were once strangers, and that is the story I wish to share with you today.
Recently, your lives have been touched by tragedy. My deepest condolences to the untimely passing of Mr. Roger's sister, Lorraine, and her husband, Derek, Life can be incredibly challenging, and it seems that you have faced more than your fair share of sorrow and adversity these last few years.
Yet, amidst the darkness, a glimmer of hope has emerged. You, Mr. and Mrs. Rogers, have selflessly opened your hearts and your home to your late sister-in-law's children. In your compassion and generosity, you have embraced them as your own, providing a loving and stable environment during their time of need.
It is with mixed emotions that I share the news that your benevolence has not gone unnoticed. You may wonder how I came to know of your circumstances, and the answer lies in the fact that I am, and will always be, a stranger, a stranger who wished to offer you the gift of life. I have been blessed with the ability to provide you with a precious new addition to your family – a baby boy.
For some time, I have been aware of your struggle with infertility and the complications you have encountered along the way. The desire to bring a child into your life has been evident, but the journey has been marked with challenges and heartache. Knowing that your dreams of parenthood have faced such adversity, I have made a decision that I hope will bring a glimmer of happiness back into your lives.
I wish to offer you the opportunity to raise this baby boy as your own. No need to worry about filing birth certificates or adoption forms; all of that will be taken care of as you read this note. Other things will be added on as time goes by, so never worry about your precious child. I hope this child becomes a source of love and joy in your lives, helping to heal the wounds left by the recent tragedy.
Life can be unpredictable and, at times, filled with hardships, but it can also be filled with moments of unimaginable beauty and grace. I hope that you will accept my offer and that this new chapter in your life will bring you the happiness and fulfillment that you so deeply deserve. I hope you'll give not only this boy a life, but to continue loving and cherishing your nieces and nephews from this point onwards.
There's always light at the end of a dark tunnel, Duane and Melissa; there's hope even in the darkest hours of the night. And I know deep down this child will continue to make your days brighter.
Sincerely,
TKC."
Melissa and Duane Rogers stared at each other in amazement after finishing reading the note. The baby boy in Mr. Rogers' arms looked at the couple and giggled, reaching his arms out to Melissa. Gently, she held out her hands and her husband gifted her the baby as he continued to giggle. He grabbed her face and nestled in her warmth, and all Melissa could do was let the tears she'd held back gush like waterfalls.
"Oh my goodness," Melissa said in between sobs. "Our little angel, oh my baby.." She held the baby tightly and kissed him over and over again as his giggles became more joyful. Embracing each other, Melissa Rogers and her husband basked in the joy of this moment as they stared above at the sky.
"Thank you, whoever you are up there. We can't thank you enough!" Melissa thanked profusely before hearing several pairs of footsteps coming down the stairs.
"Auntie, is everything alright?" A voice called from inside. After a moment, Traci and Michelle saw at least six children standing by the doorway; the oldest being fourteen and the youngest around five years old. All of them were in their pajamas and were extremely tired, some rubbing their eyes from the commotion outside.
"Everything's okay, Naina," Melissa replied as she cupped her cheek, turning to her sister-in-law's children with the newest addition to the family in her grasp. The children's eyes widened in surprise upon seeing the baby in her arms.
"Aunt Mel, who is the baby?" One of their nephews asked.
"Kids, I'm not sure how to explain this, but… meet your new baby cousin: Duane Eugene Rogers II."
Duane Sr. was speechless. "You... You named him after me?" He felt as if he wanted to cry all over again.
"I know how badly you wanted a son, Eugene. We both wanted one so bad but we weren't able to," Melissa held her husband's cheek with compassion, smiling at him before looking back at her nieces and nephews. "But, now we can have the son we've always wanted, and we'll welcome him into the family like we did to them.."
Duane Sr. chuckled as he looked back up at the sky one last time. "You think Rochelle was the reason for this?" he asked as he wrapped his arm around his wife. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was a gift from her, a blessing in disguise."
Melissa agreed, saying, "She was a saint. And now she can watch over us from heaven as an angel." She kissed her husband before going inside with him, her son, and her nieces and nephews, who were all asking a dozen overlapping questions.
Trashed Traci blew her nose, sounding like a horn. "Oh, that was heartwarming."
Hearing the excited yet bewildered communion coming from the second floor of a nursery appearing out of nowhere, Michelle Muck chuckled to herself seeing a few Garbage Pail Kids slide down a drainage pipe into some bushes before getting up. "At least we're giving them the happy ending they deserved."
Not long after, the girls walked away with only two babies left.
The second-to-last location led the girls over to, surprisingly, one of the richer areas in Newgarden Hills. Large estates lined the street, each one more luxurious than the last. As they approached, the girls stopped in their tracks and looked at each other once they reached their destination. An elegant brown two-story 15,000-square-foot manor house and two acres of parklike grounds were guarded behind a large metal gate, sealed away from any danger lurking in the night.
"Are you sure this is the right address?" Trashed Traci asked. Her eyes were wide in both speculation and amazement; she'd never seen a home this big before, let alone one could be this big.
Michelle Muck tapped her watch to make sure the batteries weren't dying, but even after a reboot, it remained at the same address. "Looks like it."
Trashed Traci and Michelle Muck then spent a good ten minutes trying to get inside; getting through and over the gate was the easy part, the hardest part was not being spotted by security cameras in the front yard. The amount of effort the two had to make to not get spotted was, in short, a waste of time. After managing to sneak behind the cameras, Michelle Muck grabbed the tan-skinned girl, used her magic to hide her powers, and clipped the same note to her diaper.
"What made Trash Can Ken choose this place?" Trashed Traci wondered. "This is a palace compared to the other homes we've been to!"
"Well, actually it's quite an interesting choice he made. While I don't normally agree with many ideas and things humans have created, we Garbage Pail Kids do respect some of the smarter decisions they've made; and the ICWA is one of them when it comes to deciding the family for this child.." Michelle Muck explained.
"What's that?" asked Trashed Traci.
"The ICWA, or the Indian Child Welfare Act, is a federal law that protects Native American children and their families from being taken away from their tribes and families and losing touch with their culture. It guarantees them the right to be placed in homes that preserve their culture and heritage." Michelle further explained as she placed the baby girl on the steps. "Trash Can Ken and I agreed to this decision as he found out she had a large percentage of Ojibwe DNA so we decided it'd be best to find a family that was related to the Ojibwe tribe to raise her."
"I did some research on this family and I was surprised about what I found. The owners of this house are Judge Waaseyaa Bearheart, a federal judge here in Newgarden Valley's district court, and Memengawaa Susan Laflesche, an orthodontist; they have only one son, Niigaanii, and two daughters, Aiyana and Halona." Michelle detailed, pulling up their information on her watch. "There were a few other Native American families living here, but the baby and this family share the most in their heritage."
"Well, I think you did a good part of doing research and not just placing them with a random family," Trashed Traci commented, patting Michelle Muck's shoulder. The other arm was holding the final baby, who was giggling at the two girls. "See, I told you humans aren't helpless; they can create good things when they put their minds to it."
"I guess you're right, for once," Michelle chuckled before the two rang the doorbell and ran off behind the home, being careful not to get front and center in the security cameras. A moment later, the door opened to reveal what the girls assumed to be Mrs. Memengawaa, wearing a bathrobe to keep her warm. Compared to the other families, she immediately noticed the baby girl on her front step and picked her up.
"Oh, you poor thing.." Memengawaa cooed as she nestled the girl in her grasp. She noticed the note clipped to her diaper and read it.
"To whoever is to read this,
Please, take care of my darling daughter, Deeksha. I am not suitable nor fit to raise her as my own, as I have dealt with various issues that I now realize will make both our lives harder if I keep her. I bless you with the wealth I see you own. All I ask is for you to give her love and a roof over her head, one of which I'm not able to provide.
~A mother."
"Oh my…" Memengawaa gasped, looking back to Deeksha and back to the note. The little girl's lip curled in fear, looking like she was about to cry again. "There there, sweetheart. It's okay. You're safe with us now.."
"Sweetheart? Is everything alright?" A voice called from inside the home, which the girls assumed was her husband.
Memengawaa got back up, cradling the baby girl closer. "Yes, dear! But, you won't believe what I found on the front porch!" And then she closed the front door.
"Do you think they'll take care of the kid?" Trashed Traci asked, rocking the last baby in her arms. "I mean, they already have three of their own."
"Let's just wait and see what they'll do," Michelle Muck replied. "That way, if they do unfortunately reject, we'll take them to another home."
For about thirteen minutes, the girls waited patiently outside as they heard the couple chat about the recent news that appeared outside on the porch. Some of the words they exchanged were good, and some of them were bad, but once the couple noticed one of their spare rooms was now a fully furnished nursery and flipped the note over to see all expenses for Deeksha were to be paid, they reconsidered their choice and willfully kept her as their fourth child.
"Deeksha Laflesche-Bearheart: got a nice ring to it, huh?" Trashed Traci said as the two girls and the baby wandered off to their last location.
Michelle, on the other hand, was too engrossed to respond. She remained silent even as they jumped the fence, ran into the forest behind the neighborhood, and followed the railway tracks to wherever their last location was for the baby girl. Even if Trashed Traci respected her decision, she couldn't help but worry once she noticed a slight twinge of regret and sadness in Michelle's eyes. She hoped nothing was wrong, or at least nothing serious.
About two miles away, the girls arrived at their last location; a five-story depilated condominium. Most of the lights were off in many of the apartments, but a few were still on; and the one they were heading to, on the third floor, had its lights on.
"Oh, great," Trashed Traci murmured as she stared above to the only window not blackened out on the third floor. "Now how are we going to get up there? We don't have access to get inside!"
"Hey, we're Garbage Pail Kids; we always find a way to solve problems." Michelle Muck insisted as she cradled the blonde girl who, before was stretching all over the place like Mr. Fantastic, now was sleeping peacefully without a care in the world. "Now, stay here and be careful. I won't take long."
Rushing over to the condominium, her anthropomorphic form shifted into more of a slush as she carefully slid up the wall onto the third-floor apartment's balcony with the baby girl. The two landed safely on the balcony and Michelle peaked through the sliding door of the apartment.
A woman in her late twenties was sleeping on the couch with another woman. One of the women was black but had albinism, with light blonde curls and pale skin, and the other woman had fair skin and curly ginger hair. The television was still playing some random sitcom, an ominous laugh track being heard now and again.
"Phew, thank goodness they're asleep," Michelle Muck said to herself then looked back at the baby girl who was now awake. "We gotta be quiet now, okay?"
The baby girl blinked in response with a big smile on her face. Carefully opening the sliding door, she and the baby girl crept inside being as quiet as they could. Sneaking past the couch, down the hallway, and into a spare bedroom. Poking her head inside, Michelle Muck expected it to be used for storage but was quickly surprised to see a few Garbage Pail Kids doing the finishing touches on the baby girl's nursery.
"My goodness, you guys are fast," Michelle Muck whispered, admiring the room. The nursery was painted a soft lilac with green silhouettes of dinosaurs plastered on the walls that were calming on the eyes; there were only a few pieces of furniture in the room like a changing table, a crib, and a couple of dressers which, once Michelle peaked inside, were stored with diapers and clothing. "I didn't even hear you guys coming in."
"When you've been practicing this type of mission for a while, you keep finding better ways to do this without slipping up." One of the kids replied, placing a frog lamp on top of one of the dressers. Michelle Muck, on the other hand, walked over to the crib and placed the baby girl in as the others exited the room.
The baby girl stared up at Michelle Muck with never-ending wonder. She began to whine, reaching out for Michelle and wanting her to hold her. No matter how hard it was, Michelle held back any instinct to comfort the poor girl; she knew what imprinting was and she didn't want that to happen to the baby. The girl deserved to live without the worry of becoming a tool for evil.
"I know, I know, sweetie. It's gonna be okay though," Michelle Muck whispered as she tried to calm the baby's whining. "You're safe with your mommies, and they're gonna take good care of you."
The baby girl continued to whine and cry, falling on her bottom as her tears trailed down her rosy cheeks. She didn't understand why Michelle wasn't coming to her; all she wanted was comfort. Michelle, panicking, instinctively picked a random frog stuffed animal from a toy chest.
"Look, here's…uh… Ho-Hopscotch!" She said as she placed it near the baby. Sniffling, the baby girl looked at the frog and grabbed it, holding it close to her chest and snuggling it.
Michelle Muck felt relieved once the baby's crying stopped as she began to drool on Hopscotch the Frog. The rest of the Garbage Pail Kids from before reentered the room with satisfied looks.
"Are the women still asleep?" Michelle Muck asked, holding another handwritten note from Trash Can Ken. "I was just about to explain everything to them before I left."
"No need," Another Garbage Pail Kid said, politely holding their hand up. "We just transmitted waves of information into their brains. When they wake up, it'll be like Patty was always their daughter."
"Oh.." Michelle looked at the note in her hand, feeling slightly embarrassed about planning for something already taken care of. She then turned her attention to the baby girl, now known as Patty, who was still happily cuddling the frog. Michelle gave a small smile before facing the children. "That makes it a little easier, I guess."
The other kids, without saying anything, headed out of the apartment through Patty's bedroom window. Michelle soon followed after but stayed for a moment once she heard Patty crying and one of her mothers coming in.
Michelle Muck watched as the woman with ginger hair began to feed Patty in a rocking chair in the corner of her room. Patty instantly calmed down as she nestled in her mother's arms, more focused on receiving the love she desired than being fed.
She left with a smile as she slipped down the apartment's building to the ground below, taking one last look at the apartment window she came out of. She didn't know why she had become so focused on this one little girl; Patty was going to be taken care of, she was safe home with loving parents, and Michelle and a certified group of Garbage Pail Kids were going to be observing her until she started questioning her powers like the others. So why was she still worried about her and all those kids she found hours ago?
Michelle hadn't felt this way in decades: an urge to guide those she was training to become the best, to protect them from any kind of harm. It felt so alien to her that this entire night felt like a dream, one so out of reach and unbelievable that every time she started to doubt it, she thought she would wake up and realize it was all in her head. But it never happened. Even as she walked back to Traci's side, she still had a feeling the babies were still there and hiding somewhere. But, she knew they were gone and she had to accept that fact. But it was so hard not to keep thinking about it.
All of those children, and hopefully the other one accidentally left behind, now had loving families. They were to be cherished and adored, their needs to be taken care of, and to be kept safe from the dangerous world around them. Michelle had no concept of what it was like to be loved by her family because she had never had the chance to grow up with them. Her family tried to kill her as soon as they discovered she was one of them, to remove the demon inside her. Even after Trash Can Ken took her in and trained her with others, she still felt like an outsider. Michelle felt no connection to humans or Garbage Pail Kids.
A lone wolf she was, and likely would always feel like one.
"Hey," Michelle snapped out of her downward spiral of thought-processing once she heard the familiar sweet tone of her closest ally. Looking to her right, the second-hand Trashed Traci eyed her with a concerned expression. She was waving her hand in front of Michelle's face but put it down once Michelle came back to reality. "Are you doing alright? You've been acting off all night."
Michelle sighed and bit her lip. "I don't know. Everything that happened tonight was all… so surreal, you know?"
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Trashed Traci let out a light chuckle, smiling softly. "I often imagined something interesting would happen to us once, but never in a million years would I expect this. But, at least we now have new duties: we get to teach the kids once they grow up and look after them! Better than sticking our hands in alleyways for spare parts, huh?"
Even as Trashed Traci tried to lighten the mood, Michelle Muck stayed quiet with her thoughts. Trashed Traci immediately picked up on how she was feeling and stopped, before wrapping her hand around Michelle. She wasn't sure how to make her feel better, but she knew what to do to help ease Michelle. "Is everything okay?"
"No. Not really.."
Trashed Traci frowned slightly, thinking. "Do you want me to stop talking?"
Michelle paused for a moment before nodding in agreement. Traci smiled in response as the two walked away from the building and back to their junkyard before the sun rose, signaling the start of a new day.
"I might feel like a nobody.." Michelle thought to herself as the two climbed inside a dumpster to ride back. She looked up, seeing her life-long companion climbing inside and sitting next to her. The two matched each other's smiles before kissing. "But at least I have someone who makes me feel like somebody."