In the days when he publicly walked among them, Numbuh Infinity overheard the jealous whining of his KND peers.

In their eyes, he had the cushiest job ever. Instead of worrying about getting his butt spanked, he got to try and get everyone to hug and play nice. They had to be fighters while he got to be a Wussy-mediator-pants, they jeered. Okay, he'll admit, that last one got to him because where did Numbuh Thirty-Five of all people learn the word 'mediator'? That boy barely sneaked out of the fourth grade with a C- average, at best. There was no way he actually knew what that word meant—anyway.

Other operatives made fun of him, and he just let them. One, because well, yeah, he did have to try and get everyone to hug and play nice and that meant sucking it up and practicing what you preach. Diplomats couldn't just fight back, or else Sector PR would never shut up. And two, he let them make fun of him because, on the grand scale of things, his pride wasn't worth exposing innocent operatives to the real nitty-gritty of what he had to do to keep them safe.

Infinity was good at what he did, and he had been doing it for a long time. A very long time, he sometimes depressingly thought. But he did it because he believed everyone should and could get along. Peace and freedom were worth fighting for, even if it meant he had to keep track of a gazillion-and-one things no normal kid should ever have to keep track of.

But when you have to keep track of a gazillion-and-one things at all times, that, unfortunately, means one or two things fell through the cracks.

No one was perfect, certainly not himself.

Sometimes ensuring a fledgling sector had diary weapons for that one villain who was planning to ambush them but just so happened to be lactose intolerant meant you couldn't be there when your mom finally passed away. Sometimes, the responsibility of stopping Numbuh Nova-2 from using New Jersey as a staging ground for a surprise attack against the Assimilated Cybernetic Creep from Across the Cosmos meant you couldn't make time to comfort your best friend after her big break-up. And, now, you wonder if you are best friends anymore because you haven't spoken to Numbuh C55H72O5N4Mg in years—perhaps due to that big break-up being your fault.

The needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few, so yeah, sometimes things fell through the cracks, no matter how much it hurt.

But as Numbuh Infinity looked at the scene before him with sector V and sector W bewildered and gathered around Dave, his broken friend—were they even still friends, considering what Infinity just learned?—he was reminded that yeah, letting things fall through the cracks hurt, but it never hurt any less, and he never forgave himself for not noticing sooner.

Such was the life of the kid who made sure everyone hugged and played nice.

"No freakin' way." The ever-brash Wallabee Beetles was the first to break the silence and bring Infinity back into the present moment. The blonde teen's mind worked overtime to make sense of what he was seeing. "That really you, Numbuh Infinity?"

Infinity nodded. "In the flesh."

"That's unpossible," Patrick said, being the next to voice his doubts, "Numbuh Infinity disappeared years ago with Numbuh 274 after the failed Kids-Teens Treaty."

Sonia nodded, eyes wavering with skepticism. "Yeah, it can't be him, right? I mean, he looks like he hasn't aged a day!"

Infinity raised a brow. "Thank you for the compliment?"

"Um, hello? Would you guys mind filling me in?" Tommy said. The young vigilante grew quite sick of being left in the dark. He was the dark avenger here, he was supposed to be the mysterious one! "What are you guys talking about? Who the heck is this guy? And why is she here?" Abby flinched as Tommy signaled her out, and looked away as he regarded her. Frowning, he decided to address the other other elephant in the room, motioning to the frazzled tree-kid-thing that was Numbuh Seventy-Four-point-Two-Three-Nine. "What do you mean this guy is an alien? This is all so weird!"

"Hey, man," Lee said, putting a calming hand on Tommy's shoulder. He looked at the boy sympathetically as he flicked his head towards Sonia and Patrick, "Chill. We're as lost as you are."

"The Tommy does NOT chill! He broods and demands answers!"

Infinity's lips thinned as he regarded the children. Yep, that paperwork was going to be so much fun. "Numbuh 3, if you would be so kind…"

Kuki was taken aback by Infinity's tone as she looked to sector W. That's right, she probably should do something about that. While she brought them along and promised answers, they were still just kids … for the most part. Something in her told her they didn't need to witness whatever transpired next.

Probably the Supreme Leader in her. That girl was very opinionated these days.

"Numbuh 83," Kuki said, authority easily oozing from her pores. Nigel and Abby shared a brief, secret look of pride. Their girl had come so far. "Take your team back to the hangar and await further instruction."

"But, ma'am—"

"Now, missy," Kuki said sternly. Her gaze softened a bit and added, "I promise we'll explain everything later."

Infinity wasn't sure he agreed with that sentiment. "Everything, Numbuh 3?"

"HUSH YOU!" The room got a few degrees hotter and Infinity yelped as Numbuh Three ran up and started shaking him. "I've had up to HERE with you bossy space jerks! I'm the Supreme Leader, they're my operatives, and I'll tell them the cruddy secrets of the universe if I want to! GOT IT!?"

"I-I got it! Just calm down!"

Upon seeing the rest of sector V holding her Supreme Leader back from ripping Numbuh Infinity a new one, Sonia decided it was best to just blindly follow orders for now and ushered Lee and Patrick to the exit. Tommy, however, squared his feet and did not move an inch.

"THAT MEANS YOU TOO, MISTER!"

"T-The T-Tommy is no Kids Next Door operative, your a-authority m-means nothing," Tommy said despite Kuki's temper now fully levied his way. However, too much was on the line this time. Thinking of his brother, he stood firm. "And he is not leaving until he gets some answers—HEY!"

"C'mon, dude," Lee said, tugging the vigilante along by his cape. "We'll get 'em later."

"But I want to get them now!"

"Hey Tommy," Sonia said sweetly, "Wasn't the snack bar busted open back there in the exhibit hall?"

"…I suppose The Tommy could go for a few chewy pellets. But only to re-fuel before the interrogation!"

Infinity tugged at his collar as the children exited and sector V seemed to get a handle on Kuki's rage. While they worked on easing her stress, the ever-dutiful diplomat walked past them and straight to the Birchbarkain kid huddled on the floor. Infinity looked down at his former comrade, the tree alien refusing to meet his eyes. A slight pang struck in his chest at the sight and he could muster a quiet sigh, "Oh, Dave…"

"Don't you 'oh Dave' me," the bark-skinned boy said, voice hollow, "You weren't there. Always too busy."

"Why didn't you tell me? I could've done something."

"Done what, exactly? Strip me of my position? Put me in a holding cell? Send me back home?"

"I would've helped you! You're my friend. You know I wouldn't let them send you back home," Infinity said, sadness tinting his tone. "Or at least I thought you did."

At his words, Dave only seemed to sink further into despair. "I guess there's a lot of things I don't know anymore."

Nigel approached the two, the others not far behind. The air was heavy between Infinity and Seventy-Four-point-Two-Three-Nine. There was so much he was in the dark about, and he honestly couldn't blame Tommy for his prior outburst; he too was getting sick of all these secrets. "Numbuh Infinity, can you please explain what's going on? Did you know that—"

"That Numbuh 74.239 was a galactic-level alien operative? Yes, I did," Infinity interrupted; Nigel was getting sick of that too, honestly. "Did I know that he was…coerced into helping Miss McKenzie? Only just recently. Only when it was far too late."

"Wait, Numbuh 362 is the traitor?" Wally balked, just now discovering this tidbit of information. He looked to Kuki, who only witlessly nodded in confirmation. "Oh…crud."

"Maybe we should play catch-up since it's all out in the open now," Abby said. She regarded both Infinity and Dave—hell, she wasn't even sure that was his real name now—and took a calming breath before asking, "How is Numbuh 74.239 a galactic-level operative? Numbuh 5 thought Numbuh 1 was the only GKND operative on Earth?"

"Numbuh 1 is the only GKND operative from Earth," Infinity clarified. "Numbuh 74.239 was sent down some time ago as part of a covert-ops cell to access the level of Earth's 2x4 technology."

"Ah, yes, back when things were so simple," Dave muttered. A nostalgic lilt echoed in his voice as he looked up at the art of the exhibit. "I thought you guys were stuck in the Stone Ages when I got here; you hadn't even gotten past the Ridiculous Barrier! Imagine that! Still operating with D-Class-thing-a-ma-bob 2x4 level tech at best. Figured we were gonna be off Earth in at least two solar cycles."

Dave gingerly stood and walked closer to the crayon scribblings on the wall. One stole his attention, a cadet's sample design of a modified loogie-flinger, fortified with super stretchy rubber bands and a cool flame vinyl sticker. By all logic, the silly thing should've never passed the brainstorming phase! And yet, "But the longer I stayed here, the more I saw things…differently. What I mistook for primitive recycling was actually just a creative way of bending science to your will! Adults think they're so smart, with their monopoly on aerodynamics, nuclear fission, and paperclips. But you guys? You said to heck with that! You'll bring them down with gumballs, snot bombs, and wooden planks. And it worked. You all got to your moon before your adults did. Do you know how amazing that feat is? I hadn't been inspired by such brazen curiosity in years!

"And it wasn't just your ingenuity, your people were just so…so weird," Dave said. A ghost of a smile graced his bark-ridden features. He glanced at other artworks; cadets drawing their classmates, pet puppies, even a few off-model, but respectable, drawings of legends like Numbuh One-Hundred.

"I mean, yes, the wedgies, wet-willies, and the cooties did not help first impressions. But the camaraderie—Numbuh 222 got me my very first Yipper Squadron starter deck; with his own allowance. I found myself invited to a sleepover with Numbuh 71.562 to watch Doctor Time Space and the Continuums—his mom made the best sugar cookies! Ah, and how could I forget good ol' Numbuh 275? He risked his butt to get everyone to simmer down while presenting my findings on Rainbow Monkey brains being cauliflower—all because I was so nervous."

Dave's branchy fingers softly trailed over one of the pictures, a cadet's crude rendition of the Science Nerd Division. Was that orange-colored blob supposed to be him? He never even noticed. "They were all…so nice to me. Nothing like Galactic Command."

Numbuh Infinity looked away, fingers twitching in his hands. Wally awkwardly scratched the back of his head whilst Kuki's eyes glistened with unshed tears, the wistfulness in Dave's tone breaking her heart. Abby crossed her arms, finding the floor much more interesting. Nigel let loose an empathetic sigh as Dave lost himself in his memories.

Nigel knew of the Birchbarkians and their tragic history. The adults of Arboria-Prime, in their greedy pursuit of capital growth, had ruined their home planet's ozone layer. Natural disasters and unprecedented climate catastrophes were commonplace, and the rigid old growths had shouldered the responsibility of salvaging what little remained of their planet on the younger generations.

Birchbarkian kids didn't even get a chance to be kids; forever saddled with a fate irresponsible adults thrust upon them.

Another sigh escaped Nigel before he said, "Sounds like you became fond of Earth."

Dave could only laugh. "How could I not? It's so wonderfully weird, you guys are crazy in all the best ways! When my human disguise glitched in front of my adoptive caretakers there were no screams of 'Ahh! Get out of here, you alien freak!' it was just 'Well, Dave, you've got no excuse to not help with the gardening now'! Oh, those crazy old tree-huggers. They hammer into your head that adulthood is a disease and to avoid infection at all costs. But ... how can some adults be so accommodating? Are there outliers? Do human immune systems adapt to the infection differently? I-I had to know more."

Infinity hid a smile behind a cough. That day was a fond memory. Leave it to Appalachia environmentalists to take everything in stride.

"So I decided, what the heck, why not stay a while? There was no deadline for my assignment. Besides, I could fight the good fight here. Knock some sense into your adults before they make the same mistakes ours did. Could use the excuse of keeping an eye on your technological growth to put down some roots. Everything was perfect," Dave said. His smile slowly vanished. "But then the mission changed."

Kuki couldn't help but ask, "What happened?"

"Grandfather happened."

Sector V shared a collective shiver of panic at the tyrant's name. In their minds, one of—if not the only—positives to potential decommissioning was comfort knowing their memories of that traumatic affair would be effectively forgotten. Nigel's shoulders tensed, and let his mouth hang open for a moment or two before asking, "What does he have to do with anything?"

"A lot more than I'd ever care to admit," Infinity said. All eyes turned to him as he began explaining. "Grandfather is a special case in the annals of all kid-dom: he was a planetary-level threat. One that should remind us of how the GKND's code: reboot utterly failed Earth. With the fall of the 19th Century Kids Next Door command structure, there was nothing to stop Grandfather from uniting the evilest, most corporate lap-dog-est adults to take complete control and enslave the children of the world. It was nothing short of a miracle he was stopped. Both times."

"And after he was stopped the second time, that's when the Important Ones' eyes were finally on Earth," Dave said, aiming a heavy look Nigel's way. "On you."

"Numbuh 1 was already under surveillance, along with other potential candidates, but leading the charge to defeat Grandfather caused them to take a greater interest in his career," Infinity continued, taking a stance between Dave and the bewildered sector V. "And after assessing everything, his recruitment to galactic level status became a top priority."

Nigel suddenly was in the hotbed of a lot of attention, and the temperature was palpable. "But I wasn't the only one who took down Grandfather—"

"But you were the only one who exemplified everything they stood for. It didn't matter whether it was your friends, your family, your girlfriend, or yourself; your loyalty to the Kids Next Door and its cause came before all else," Infinity said with a pointed look. "And that's exactly what the higher-ups look for in a galactic-level operative."

Nigel's hands went loose at his side, feeling numb as he stared blankly at the ground. He had no counter for that. No witty comeback. Infinity just told him how it was—how it is, and Nigel could not find the words or muster the courage to argue. A myriad of emotions battled in his mind, the entire room almost fading to the background. A squeeze on his shoulder pulled him back into the present, and he looked over to give a small, thankful smile Kuki's way.

Kuki nodded at the boy, giving him a reassuring squeeze reserved for her very special people. The two space jerks in front of them, however, were most certainly not among her special people. No, they got her The-Supreme-Leader-is-about-bring-a-whole-lotta-doo-doo-on-you frown. "So, what you're saying is Numbuh 74.239's mission changed to manipulate Numbuh 1 into joining you?"

A wave of shame caused Dave to flinch, but before he could say a word, Infinity cut him off by saying, "He was not alone. I played a significant part in Numbuh 1's recruitment. Myself and…one other galactic-level operative. At the time, it seemed like the right call to make."

Wally snarled, pounding his fists together. "Another operative, ya say?"

"Yes, another operative who is not here and whose identity I will not disclose, no matter what level of bullying you plan to inflict on me," Infinity said, challenging Wally's glare. Satisfied, he offered a more apologetic look Nigel's way. "But that same operative, Numbuh 1…I know this is vague, but I want you to know that deep down, I know they deeply regret how things ended."

Nigel felt his heart skip a beat, despite it all. He fell back on anger came back as he said, "If you're not going to tell me who it is, then what's even the point?"

Infinity was silent for a long moment before saying, "I suppose there's not one."

"What's done is done," Abby said, speaking up as she strode forward, a set look on her face. "Ain't nothing we can do about the past. Only thing that matters is the here and now." She steadied her gaze on Dave. "And it doesn't change the fact that he sold us out."

"I didn't have a choice," Dave said. "Numbuh 362 found out I was an alien and was gonna expose me if I didn't give her something on the GKND. They'd ship me back home, decommission all my friends, and my caretakers—I don't even want to think of what would happen to them since they're adults." He covered his eyes, even despite biological differences, they knew he was crying. "I'm a hypocrite. I grew too attached. I didn't know what else to do to keep them safe."

Abby reeled back, clearly not expecting Dave's response. She pinched the bridge of her nose. She missed the days when jerks were jerks, and she and her friends were just the good guys; kicking evil butt and taking names. Why was nothing ever easy anymore?

Nigel, on the other hand, stood conflicted. As Dave revealed how far Rachel was willing to go get her hands on evidence…he shook his head, trying to ward off the sickness in the pit of his stomach. "No. I don't believe—there's no way she would do something like—"

"Yes, Nigel," Abby's hiss silenced him. Her eyes bored angrily into a crayon drawing that cadet Three-Sixty-Three had made of his bigger sister a long time ago. "She would."

The air was thick with tension, and no one said anything for a while.

Tired of the quiet, Kuki politely coughed into her hand before asking, "So what happens now?"

Infinity walked forward. He bent over to pick up a long-forgotten device, the sole reason they were all at the Seriously Cool Museum of Artifacts and Stuff, and gently placed it into Nigel's hands. "I believe you'll need this," the diplomat said as he handed over the KNDNA Tracker. His eyes were unreadable beyond his sunglasses. "You only have three days left. I can't hold them off any longer."

Nigel nodded before looking over at Dave. "And what about him?"

Infinity looked over his shoulder at his fallen friend—were they still friends, after all this?—and sighed. "That's not your concern anymore."

"We said we would help him."

"I know you did. But it's not your mistake to fix." Infinity said, walking away from Nigel. "I'll be in touch."

Dave stared at his reflection in his pool of tears. What a sad, pathetic dork he looked like right now. So caught up in his pity party, he gasped as a hand came between him and the puddle.

"C'mon, Dave." He looked up to see Infinity extending his hand, a neutral look on his face. "It's time to go home."

A new round of tears fell from his wooden sockets, but the fight in him had long been snuffed out. He weakly took the diplomat's hand and found himself on his feet. "I suppose so."

Infinity nodded and motioned towards the rear exit. To everyone's shock, Dave followed Infinity. No handcuff, no struggles. Just one lonely Birchbarkian following the kid diplomat like a broken puppy. Infinity walked into the shadows without another word, Dave went to follow but stopped just at the threshold.

"Good luck, Numbuh 1. I pray you make better decisions than I did," Dave said, his back to them all. "And for what it's worth, I'm sorry it came to all this."

And then he left, leaving four-fifths of the soul of sector V alone.

"...so, there are people higher up? Even higher than the Supreme Leader?"

"Yep."

"And these guys recruited Numbuh 1 and made you all keep it a secret?"

"Now you're getting it, pipsqueak."

"And to top it all off, these guys are a part of something called the Galactic Kids Next Door, think getting old is a disease, and they're freaky space aliens?"

"Hit the nail right on the pinkie!"

Patrick blinked. Blinked once more. Then, he frowned before saying, "That's gotta be the biggest load of crud I've ever heard."

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Wally said, facepalming and groaning into his hand. Here he was, wasting his precious time bringing sector W and Numbuh Eighty-Five up to speed—when he could be checking in on his mates—and the little buggers didn't have the decency to take him seriously! Why did Kuki trust him with this sort of junk? "Why would I go through all the trouble of makin' that up?"

Paddy stood on his tip-toes to meet Wally's height and poked him harshly. Not that hard of a feat, to be honest. "Cause you're a teenager. A traitorous one too! In fact, I still gotta bring you in for immediate decommissioning!"

"And I keep tellin' ya, I ain't no traitor! I've been on you guys' side! It'd take a buhmillion hands to count how many times I've saved your un-thankful butts. I'm like a triple—no, quadruple secret agent!"

Lee raised a finger. "But didn't you say you weren't one of those teen spies like Numbuh 5?"

Wally faltered. "Uh, technically yeah, I ain't all official-like, but—"

Patrick kept pushing. "And did or did you not give me a black eye when escaping on your thirteenth birthday?"

"Geez, ya still mad about that? I had to make it look real!"

"Come on guys, you saw what happened with Numbuh 74.239," Sonia said, butting in. Out of all the children present, she seemed to take Wally's recounting of events earnestly. Ever being the voice of reason befitting a sector leader, she said, "And, I mean, if you think about it, Numbuh 4 was kinda always there when things got real scary."

"Thank you! Least someone 'round here appreciates my hard work."

"Though," Sonia said as a thought came up, "I don't know how giving me a wet-willy that one time helped us…"

"Aw man, why ya gotta bring that up?"

Nigel shook his head several feet away, bemused, as he eavesdropped on Wally's conversation. He let his blonde friend regale the four young operatives with his tales as he went back to gazing at the quiet suburb beyond the perimeter of the treehouse museum. After Infinity left with Numbuh Seventy-Four-point-Two-Three-Nine, they all wandered to the open hanger to regroup with sector W and take a much-needed moment to breathe. Abby was in a private corner, no doubt debriefing Numbuh Nine about their bizarre situation. Kuki was on her com-link, assuring her personal guard and the Moonbase that, yes, she was fine, everything was okay, and stop asking questions you don't need the answer to. Wally took it upon himself to fill in sector W of the situation as he was a master of getting straight to the point; his words, not theirs.

And Tommy…

Tommy was somewhere doing Tommy-things.

That left Nigel to himself, legs dangling off the edge as he nursed his wounds and picked the last of ear wax from his clothes. He looked down in his hands, the KNDNA Tracker humming on stand-by. He allowed himself a nostalgic smile; the last time he used the device, he had to track down the legendary Numbuh Zero and save the world. The journey had unearthed many hidden truths, some unpleasant, but some most certainly worth the adventure. His smile faded, remembering he had to use the device to repeat the same old song and dance, though he couldn't find anything pleasant at all about having to track down his old boss who desired nothing more than to tear down everything they once both believed in. His other hand dug into his pocket, pulling out a sealed vial with one stray lock of blonde hair. His mind was a whir with conflicting thoughts of Rachel.

One had a fonder memory of his old friend; laughing as they spilled marinara sauce over each other during Meatball Sandwich Mondays.

Then there was the recent memory; a scorned fugitive who threw him out a SCAMPER and blackmailed another operative into getting what she wanted.

Maybe there was some truth to aging being a disease. Nigel couldn't think of any other way how his once cherished comrade could sink so far. Maybe even too far for him to reach now…

"Why the long face, grumpy pants?"

Nigel was more than thankful for the distraction as Kuki plopped down beside him. He pocketed both items before saying, "Oh, you know. A thousand things on my mind. The usual."

Kuki softly chuckled as she teasingly knocked his noggin. "It better be a thousand reasons why Rainbow Monkeys are the most adorable, hugable creatures in the universe. That's the only correct answer."

"Oh, of course," Nigel answered in good nature. His posture relaxed a bit as his mind centered on the present moment, here with Kuki. "Thanks for bailing us out back there."

Kuki playfully fluttered her eyelashes. "Well, you did risk your big butt to break my boyfriend out of prison. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't return the favor, ya goof?"

"My butt isn't that big," he chuckled. His eyes wandered past her, curiously looking as Wally pantomimed at sector W. "Speaking of, do they know about all that?"

Kuki puffed her cheeks before releasing a huff of hot air. "No. But given how much they helped us, I should probably tell them. They're good operatives, some of my best. It's been…selfish how much I've lied about things."

"Ah, those kids have good heads on their shoulders. I'm sure they'll understand."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure they'll understand me abusing my power and breaking the rules for my friends," Kuki said sarcastically. She brought up her knees, resting her arms and chin on them as she slumped. "Some Supreme Leader I turned out to be."

"Hey, I know good Supreme Leaders, both on and off Earth. You're definitely one of the best. No bias whatsoever here," Nigel said, placing a comforting hand on her back. He gave her a cheeky smirk. "Besides, you're the leader. You make the rules."

"I do, don't I?" Kuki said, a thought crossing her mind as she mused over some recent events. She put it on the back burner upon seeing the sad, faraway look in his eyes. She put a hand on his knee, squeezing gently before saying, "I'm sorry about Rachel. I know it must be hard for you."

Nigel was quiet for a moment. Kuki gave him all the time he needed before he simply said, "Yeah."

"It's so stupid," Kuki said, glaring at the floor. "All this backstabbing. Why…why can't people just talk to each other? Why does everyone have to hide what they're feeling? I'm tired of it, all these secrets. I feel like, lately, they hurt us more than protect us."

"Painful secrets or not, it doesn't change that what she's doing is wrong," the boy said evenly, "or the fact I have to stop her."

Kuki looked at him. Nigel schooled his features to be unreadable, but he could never lie to her. The turmoil she saw under the surface ate away at her heart. "But how are you going to stop her? What will you do when you find her again?"

"…I don't know," was all he said. "Remember when things were simpler? Back when we chased down rogue ice cream trucks, raided grocery stores for cereal, and delivered food to Global Command? I missed when it was fun."

"Yeah. Sure, it got scary, but we were all together back then."

"And now we're all apart. Now we're just alone, fumbling with what to do next."

Right then and there, Kuki decided she had quite enough of his downtrodden expression. After all he'd been through, Nigel deserved one moment of solace. She glanced around, really wishing she brought a spare rainbow monkey to hug. There was only so much you could prepare for, being kidnapped by your own operatives and all, but still. She looked to the sky for answers, the sun already set and stars trying to twinkle into existence. Seeing some of their glimmering sparkles, she gently held Nigel's hand. "Hey, remember that stakeout you took me on forever and a half ago?" she asked, kickstarting his memory. "Where we stalked one of Robin Food's henchmen 'cause you thought he was trying to steal the school's tater-tots?"

Nigel looked at her for a moment, then rolled his eyes. "Ah, yes. How could I forget; we wasted all afternoon waiting for his 'contact'," he said with air quotes, "who turned out to just be his girlfriend he wanted to surprise."

"We didn't waste time, silly. We caught butterflies, got ice cream, played games." She giggled into her hand. "You almost beat up Chad when he delivered us pizza!"

"Well someone neglected to mention they were ordering pizza in the first place," Nigel said, though there was no real malice in his voice. A smile threatened to break out, the fond whimsy of that afternoon creeping in. However, it was snuffed out as remembered another fact. "But...I remember being grumpy for most of it. It was after Lizzie broke up with me. That day would've been our anniversary. It was…sad. Seeing those two together just reminded me how alone I was."

"And you remembered what we did so you wouldn't feel so alone?" Both her hands took his, and she warmly smiled as she tilted her head upwards, her eyes shining as she softly said, "We watched the stars."

Nigel followed her gaze, seeing a few constellations blinking into existence under the retreating light of day. His smile returned, the sensations of that night on the hillside all coming back to him: the crisp warm summer breeze caressing his nose, the soft cut grass tickling under his knees, and his eyes marveling at the stellar art show Kuki shared with him that night. He could hear both of their voices as if it were yesterday. "You claimed to find the first-ever constellation of ballerina flamingos."

Kuki laughed. "And you taught me about Follow-the-leader …" Her entire face beamed at the memory. "I always knew how to find my way home after that."

"Ah," Nigel said with a wry grin, "so you can pay attention."

The girl gave him a playful smack. Her eyes scanned the darkening expanse of wonder above them, searching for something as if her entire life depended on it. Her eyes lit up, and a soft look entered her gaze as she guided Nigel's hand. "But do you remember those stars?" she asked quietly, using both their hands to point to a clunky, unsorted gathering of stars just under the moon. "Those were my favorite."

Nigel looked to see what she was seeing. When he was younger, he had no idea of what assortment of stars she had pointed out to him. However, now he had clarity. His mouth was agape, chock full of emotion that stopped any flow of words. But the ever-dutiful Kuki was right there to pick up his slack.

"That one? That one is Abby," she explained, voice soft as she moved to the adjacent set. "On top of her is Wally, and he's holding up Hoagie…" There was a pause, Kuki's voice trailing off as tears built up in her eyes. Nigel noticed, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. Kuki wiped at her eyes. "They're all trying to climb to the moon, see?"

Nigel wasn't shocked at all at how the stars seemingly came together. He could make out Abby, Wally, and even Hoagie, flawlessly as the picture Kuki was painting became clearer. "And where are we?"

"We're right there at the top," she said, grinning and pointing at a conjoined mass of stars. "You're standing on Hoagie's shoulders giving me a piggyback ride while I wave at the Moonbase."

Kuki gave a childish wave at the moon, and Nigel couldn't help but join her. They both stared at Kuki's constellation, a flurry of feelings swirling around the two.

"I know it's been hard, feeling like you're alone. Especially these past few years, but you gotta remember we're up there watching you too," Kuki said. "When things are hard, or you don't know where to go and miss us, just look up there and say hi. Anytime you want." Nigel could do nothing but nod, the constellation stirring something warm and heavy in his chest. It was almost overwhelming. He was jostled, surprised to see Kuki had leaned fully into him, her hug firm as she sniffled into his shirt. "I'm lucky, you know? Super lucky. Every time I think I see you, I think it's for the last time. But then you go and be a Mister-Trouble-Magnet, and I have to save your butt again. Getting rescued by silly Numbuh 3; that's gotta be embarrassing for you, right?"

Nigel smiled, returning Kuki's hug and closing his eyes. "Never for a second."

Kuki quietly laughed, allowing a few tears to flow. "Sillyhead."

"Takes one to know one."

"But…I know luck can't last forever. Eventually, the last time will be the last time I see you." Kuki said, her voice cracking. She pulled away, her face red and puffy, but still radiant enough to power through with a wide grin. "But whenever that is, whatever happens next, you gotta know we'll always be kids where it counts. And as long as we're always kids, then we're always gonna be friends. No matter what."

"Ahem."

The two turned to see Abby had joined them, hand still covering her mouth where she quietly coughed. The older girl looked down at the two operatives, eyes clouded with a thoughtful gaze. There was no stoic stare or serious sneer. Abby just took in her two former teammates, a soft "hmm" trapped in the back of her throat.

Nigel raised a brow, fighting back a knowing smile. "And how long have you been lurking there?"

Abby scoffed, turning her gaze upward. Even with the sunglasses, Nigel couldn't help but notice her gaze tracing Kuki's constellation as her body relaxed, the night hair tickling the locks of her frizzy hair. "Long enough."

The bald boy and Supreme Leader rose to their fight, the former dusting off his legs while the latter composed herself. Abby was so dang hard to read these days, and not in the cool aloof way like when they were younger. No, now it was all business, and Kuki felt like she had to walk on eggshells. Her eyes sneaked a look at the kids around the SCAMPER, dreading the scolding she was about to get for bringing them into this.

Kuki took a deep breath, remembering why she did it. This needed to be done. Abby had to understand. "Numbuh 5, look, I know bringing sector W wasn't ideal but—"

"Ya did good."

All the breath whooshed from the Supreme Leader. Of all the responses she mentally prepped for, that one—that one was not on the bingo card. "Um, really?"

"Girl, we'd be mincemeat if you didn't bring back up. Call her crazy, but Numbuh 5's a lil too thankful to still be breathing to get on ya for all the reg violations." Abby peered over at Nigel, then shrugged. "'Sides, Numbuh 1 being back is the worst kept secret ever at this point."

"Hey," he said defensively, "I've been trying to keep a low profile."

"Didn't you start a riot in the Moonbase decommissioning wing not even three days ago?"

"The keyword was trying."

Kuki wrung her hands. It'd been so long since Abby spoke to her so casually. She knew the girl had been through a lot, probably more than any of them. But it stung worse and worse each time when conversation was a brief mission report, or a short text containing intel on a teen operation. With each passing interaction, it seemed the wall between them had grown so much that it was nearly impenetrable.

"Thanks, Numbuh 5," was all Kuki could manage to say. In the shadow of the older girl, she just smiled sheepishly. "It…it means a lot you trust the calls I make. I know not all of them are the best."

The girl's brazen display of insecurity shocked Abby. So much so that she fought the urge to recoil. Maybe it was exhaustion catching up to her, maybe it was the near-death experience, or maybe, she noted as he looked on curiously, being around Nigel and working in a unit after so long made her take a closer look at Numbuh Three. A closer look than she dared to take in a long while. Kuki wore the mask of a Supreme Leader well. So well, that even Abby forgot the once cheerful girl underneath. The cheerful girl who once lovingly braided her hair or came to her for sisterly advice. A girl, if she was being honest with herself, she left with a crud-ton of responsibility and hardly ever looked back.

Someone else she let down—

Abby bit back her inner critic as she stepped forward, shoving her walls down, and placed a hand on Kuki's shoulder. Nigel, for his part, said nothing but watched hopefully. "Kuki, I wouldn't have asked to TAG you in if I didn't trust you," she said. "Being Supreme Leader…ya gotta make tough calls. Sometimes those calls make ya mean, so much that it becomes easy and you don't come back from it. But you ain't mean when you don't gotta be. The job makes ya cynical, made me cynical, but that ain't your style. When the chips are down, you look for the good in everything, even when no one else wants to. It's what makes you a great Supreme Leader." Abby squeezed her shoulder and flashed a small ghost of a smile. "A better leader than dumb ol' Numbuh 5 ever was."

The small girl gasped, absorbing everything the older one had to say. Kuki blinked a few happy tears away, grabbing Abby's hand and caressing it in both of her own. "What is that supposed to mean? I had a great example!"

Abby chuckled, using her hands to hold Kuki's, their fingers intertwined like the threads of a tapestry, weaving a story of forgiveness and enduring camaraderie. The softness of their touch spoke volumes, carrying the weight of shared memories and the promise of a steadfast bond, proving that even after storms, true friends find their way back to each other. "If you ever find this 'great example', you let me know, girl."

"Ugh, will you lot get a room? Ain't like ya got a whole treehouse to yourselves or nothin'."

Abby, Kuki, and Nigel looked up as Wally sauntered over, hands in his pockets and sneakers kicking away loose leaves. Nigel noticed the blond fighter's rugged attitude, but smirked, knowing exactly how to disarm it. "You're welcome to join us, Numbuh 4."

Wally gagged. "Puh-lease. Like I want in on some lame pity party."

"No need to be jealous, Wally," Kuki said, a sweet teasing lilt to her voice. "There's enough care to share around here!"

"I'm not even gonna dig-ma-fy that with a response," he said, haughtily turning up his nose. Upon noticing Abby stepping up to him, he frowned up at the girl, cursing that after all this time, she still had a good head over him. "What do you want?"

Abby took his words in stride, giving him an easy smile. "Nice save back there, sport."

"Oh, so the great Numbuh 5 is praisin' me, eh? Ain't that swell," he grumbled. "Don't get used to it. Jus' happened to be in the neighborhood, is all. Plus Numbuh 1 was stuck with ya, couldn't let him bite it."

His words stung, but she couldn't deny that they weren't deserved. Wally took it the hardest when she went reclusive. She held strong to her little smile. "Really? Used to be Numbuh 5 could count on ya watching her six. But s'cool, you do you—"

"Where do you get off?" Wally snapped, the anger in his gaze giving her pause. "Give me the silent treatment for years, want nothin' to do with me jus' cause I wanna help, jus' cause I wanna make things easier for you. Oh, but since I ain't no fancy-pants teen operative, I ain't worth squat, that right? Too good to give little Wally the time of day!"

Kuki went to say something, but Nigel's hand stopped her. He shook his head. Despite wanting to jump in, she trusted his judgment and watched on with apprehension.

"But now I save your life, and I suddenly exist? Now I matter?" he raged, stretching up to get so close she could feel his spittle. "Now it's like all of that crud never happened and we're friends again? It don't work like that! You don't get to be all cool and buddy-buddy with me! You don't get to waltz out of my life then welcome ya'self back in all-of-a-sudden!"

Abby's smile dimmed, and she looked away. Sadness rolled off of her, seeming to only feed the blonde's fury. "Yeah. Guess that's a fair point."

"You think you know fair? Well, I know unfair. Ya wanna know what unfair is? Unfair is watchin' one of your best friends fold in on herself and not let ya in. Unfair is watchin' her push ya away makin' you wonder what you did wrong. Unfair is watchin' her destroy herself cause she thinks she's the center of the cruddy world and thinks everything is her fault! Unfair is her thinking she's the only one allowed to hurt!" Wally was furious, voice picking up volume with each sentence. Years of bottled-up frustration, despair, and angst spewing out like a shaken-up can of root-bear.

Abby bared the onslaught. What else could she do? She slammed the door in the face of the rambunctious blonde pipsqueak who just wanted to be there for her. She refused entry to her loyal, hardheaded little nuisance who'd rather sit through a thousand years of solitary detention than let her suffer alone.

"And you wanna know what else is unfair?" he said, chest heaving with each breath. "It's unfair for her to think we can just—just pick up where we left off. You must think I'm stooopid to think I'll let it be that easy for you!"

"Nah, you the smartest of all of us, Wally. No foolin'," Abby said softly, her eyes looking off to the side. "I'm the stupid one, and I'm sorry. You're right, it ain't gonna be that easy. You got every right in the world to hate me—"

Wally crashed into her, the force of the impact sending her to the ground. She lost the air in her lungs for a second, then looked down to see the boy holding her tight and a warm wetness spreading over her shoulder.

"Just shut up," Wally cried. He held on tightly as if she would disappear. "Me? The smart one? As if!"

Abby slowly wrapped her arms around the boy, resting her chin on his head. "You callin' Abby a liar?"

"I'm callin' Abby a jerk!" he sniffed, trying and failing to get a hold of his tears. Man, this is why he hated all this emotional junk. "Ya ain't gotta carry the world on your shoulders. Y'know how heavy that is? It's why we were a team—friends! We were supposed to do that stuff together!"

She sighed, rubbing soothing circles on his back. "I'm sorry I let you down, sport."

"Well, you better not do it again," he said, pulling away. He used the sleeve of his jacket to wipe away the tears and snot, trying to recover some semblance of macho he had left. "Or else I'll pound ya."

Abby said nothing, her face neutral for a moment. Just when Wally was about to ask if something was wrong, she quickly ruffled his hair, earning an agitated yelp from the boy as she chuckled. "Gonna hold you to that, shorty."

"Hey! I ain't short no more! I had a huge growth spurt!"

"Not looking like it from up here."

"I-I ain't done with that puberty thing yet! Jus' you wait-n-see!"

Peeking around the corner of the SCAMPER was sector W, deliberately ignoring orders from Wally to stay put inside. The three quietly watched the scene unfold, Sonia and Patrick overwhelmed with emotion and letting tears cascade freely. Lee, for his part, flicked his yo-yo to and fro but smiled as he looked at his four heroes having a moment for just themselves.

Poor Paddy couldn't take it and began bawling in his hands. Sonia gently pat him on the back, but cautiously whispered to her second-in-command. "You think they'll be okay?"

Lee caught his yo-yo and wiped at his eyes hidden under his trapper hat. "Yeah, I think so."

Abby rose, bringing Wally with her. She looked to see Nigel and Kuki huddling close, the latter beaming with joy and the other nodding with relief and satisfaction. Getting a reign on her emotions, the eldest of them rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, okay, enough mushy junk. The clock's still tickin'."

"Numbuh 5's right," Nigel agreed, his demeanor tightening as he grasped the KNDNA Tracker. "I've only got three days left to stop Rachel, but now that we finally have the tracker, we just need to prepare an ambush."

Kuki took Wally's hand. While the blond got his emotions in check, Kuki stepped forth and spoke for the both of them. "How can we help?"

"You gotta get back to the Kids Next Door. You can only tell 'em to mind their own business so many times. They're gonna figure something's up," Abby said sternly, but not without concern. "Me and Numbuh 1 got this. With the Tracker and tech from the Basement, we can finally get the jump on her for once."

Wally twitched his nose before saying, "Well, the KND ain't gonna worry about me. I'm comin' with ya guys to help!"

Abby shook her head. "Nu-uh. You gotta go home."

"What!? After all that crud I just said—"

"Wally," Abby said softly, cutting him off with a worried gaze. "Your parents are probably worried sick wonderin' where you are."

Kuki gently squeezed his hand. "Yeah. If what Numbuh 83 told me is true then in their eyes, you got abducted off the street."

Wally got all sheepish after following that logic train. "Well, uh, I'll jus' call 'em and—"

"And then your mom is gonna go nuts and order your butt home anyway. You know how she is, Pookie-bear."

Abby and Nigel blinked, then bit their lips as laughs threatened to spill out. "Pookie-bear?"

"We talked about pet names in public, Kuki," Wally grumbled, face red as a beet. Kuki, for her part, had the decency to be squeamish and covered her mouth. Wally just sighed, defeated. "Whatever, I'll go home for now. Still kinda in the doghouse after that whole Teen Ninja business kept me out past curfew."

"Ah. Yes, that. Probably should tell them I had to 'head back to England' for an emergency if you haven't already," Nigel said, remembering his old exchange student cover and how he'd inadvertently left that on Wally in the ensuing chaos. Remembering another pressing matter, Nigel centered his attention on Kuki as he asked, "By the way, Numbuh 3. While we're grateful for the assist, why did you decide to bring sector W in on this anyway?"

"Oh, poop! I can't believe we almost forgot!"

"Forgot? Forgot about…" Nigel's voice trailed off as his eyes narrowed. Acting on instinct, he threw his arm back as something descended upon him. He caught the wrist of his would-be assailant and swung them overhead before twisting the appendage and pinning the shadowy culprit on their stomach.

"Ow! Owowowowow, watch the arm! Watch the arm!"

"Tommy?" Nigel snapped from his daze, immediately releasing the boy. The younger Gilligan stood up, rubbing at his wrist and grumbling that his super dramatic entrance had been foiled yet again. "What on earth is wrong with you? I could've really hurt you."

"Oh yeah? Well, you cheated! If it wasn't for your stupid secret space training, I totally would've won," Tommy whined. He rotated his arm, popping his shoulder back into place with a groan. Recovering from that, he flailed his cape with a flashy swoosh, and lowered his voice an octave or three as he said, "And The Tommy has come for you, Nigel Uno."

The bald boy pinched the bridge of his nose. And he thought the alien, of all things, would be the weirdest thing he had to deal with tonight.

"You have evaded the long reach of justice for far too long. You abandoned your post, fled to the stars, and left the innocent here unprotected," Tommy went on, hands wiggling for dramatic effect. "Your negligence must be punished. But The Tommy, to the surprise of many, is capable of mercy. The Tommy, with his all-knowing wisdom, shall set you on the path of righteousness once more. With this task of repentance, you may just yet escape the shadow of avengence!"

Nigel rolled his eyes. "As much as I love community service, I'm kinda busy saving the world. I'll have to give you a rain check."

"The Tommy accepts no such currency!" Tommy protested. He was silent for a moment, mustering up the courage for his next proclamation. Nigel and Abby found it weird. They found it even weirder that Wally and Kuki weren't reacting to this foolishness. In fact, if they didn't know any better, it seemed they were silently encouraging the boy. "Nigel Uno! In order to redeem yourself, you must assist The Tommy on one of his greatest—no, THE greatest case he has ever undertaken! You must help him bring back Hoagie P. Gilligan!"

Silence settled within the open hangar bay. Nigel was truly at a loss for words. Of all the reasons Tommy could've had for going through heck and back to find him, he never once considered the driving force could be Hoagie. He lost himself in a trance of memories; meeting the kind portly boy in kindergarten who shared his crust-less PB&J sandwich with him, looking in awe as the crafty inventor revealed a modified COOLBUS calibrated to Nigel's exact design, and the tears behind those aviator goggles as he said goodbye that fateful night many moons ago.

"Hoagie," was all he could utter. In all of the drama, he'd nearly forgotten his dear friend. But ever since his return, any mention of the wise-cracking pilot of sector V seemed almost taboo. Kuki kept vague on details whenever he was brought up. Wally seemed overcome with self-directed anger when the elder Gilligan came up in conversation.

And Abby…

"No." Nigel turned at Abby's strained voice. Her face was hard as steel, but her eyes were frantic enough to betray her stoic mask. Her fists clenched, her body succumbing to tremors barely noticeable to the untrained eye. Nigel watched, concerned as all the progress, all the effort they just put forth to bring her walls down seemed pointless as she retreated into herself again. "No, you can't be—no."

"Abby," Kuki said, her voice pleading. "Tommy thinks he knows how to help Hoagie. He thinks Nigel is the key."

"This isn't some cartoon, Numbuh 3! Numbuh 1 doesn't magically have all the answers."

"Wait, slow down," Nigel interrupted. "Tommy, what are you talking about?"

Abby snapped her hand at the bald boy. "Numbuh 1, don't encourage him. We don't have—"

"Hoagie hasn't been himself in a long time. Not ever since the accident with Father," Tommy said quietly, but it was enough to silence any further protests from Abby. Seeing her loss for words, and curious anger creeping into Nigel's eyes at the mention of his dear uncle, Tommy pushed on. "He's…he's like a shell of his old self. Everyone gave up on him. They all said there was nothing that could be done, but they're wrong. They're wrong."

Nigel noted Kuki's sobering slouch of shame and how Wally turned away, punching the hangar wall. He noted Abby pinching her nose, anxiously pacing in place, and muttering under her breath. His brows knitted together as Tommy took a breath before continuing his speech.

"Hoagie is still in there. My brother is still fighting. So I'm gonna keep fighting for him too, even if no one else will." Tommy clenched his fist, it shaking as he stared down at it. "I don't know how to explain it, but I just know he's leaving me hints. Leaving me clues."

Tommy took a deep breath, slowly extending his arm to point up at Nigel who stood stoic. "And they led me to you."

Nigel was silent, a calculating frown set on his face. The silence stretched on, causing all around him to pause what they were doing and look at him curiously. They could see the gears turning, could see semblances of their old leader, the only one who took a total of four-point-two seconds to go over all the variables, all of the odds, and all of the risks before settling on a plan of action. Kuki and Wally looked on hopefully. Abby waited apprehensively. Tommy kept pointing at Nigel, his resolve never faltering. It was a slow and torturous four-point-two seconds.

At four-point-three seconds, "What do you need me to do?"

"Nigel, no," Abby said, voice hard as she got in his face. Her sunglasses lowered just enough for him to see the tears building behind her steely gaze again. "We don't have time. If we don't stop Rachel, all those innocent kids are gonna suffer for it. You only have three days."

"It'll take one day for us to stop Rachel. One before that to prepare," he said, leveling an equally hard look at Abby. Kuki and Wally tensed, recognizing when their leader and second-in-command were at odds, both too stubborn to back down. "I can spare one day for Numbuh 2."

"Don't—don't do that," Abby said harshly, shaking her head. "Abby understands—I know how you feel, but you weren't there."

"I'm here now."

Abby groaned, clenching her eyes to shut out the unwanted memories of fire licking her heels, but they flared up regardless of her pleas.

All that mattered was Hoagie. She had to move faster. She had to reach him.

She had to save them

"Enjoy your little joke, Mister Gilligan."

The fiery shadow of Father held up Hoagie with one hand as he brought up a sinister device with the other.

"Because it's the last joke…"

There was a crackle as the flames turned blue, the device whirring with a sound too painfully familiar.

"YOU'LL EVER MAKE!"

"You don't know what he did," she whispered, trying to block out Hoagie's scream. This was too much. "You don't know what—"

"Abby."

She found herself centered as Nigel placed both hands on his shoulders. Gone was his take-no-nonsense stare. Instead, there was a soft reassurance that reminded her to breathe.

"Please," he said, speaking firmly. "Tell me what happened to Hoagie."

Abby locked gazes with the boy, then slowly turned to the other three. She slowly went through their faces, Kuki, Wally, and finally Tommy himself. They all stood quiet as mice, not uttering a peep as her next words seemed to carry some final verdict. Some part of her raged that this was pointless. She tried everything. Did everything she could think of, yet nothing mattered. She failed her friends just like she failed Hoagie.

This is all your fault, the voice found its way back.

So tempted she was to listen to that voice and spare herself the agony. Save herself from the pain because that's all this would lead to. Not just for her, but for all of them. The one thing she accomplished was shielding them all from that torture, and she'd be damned if she failed at the one thing she'd managed not to screw up all these years. But as she looked at Tommy and her friends around her, she saw and felt it. She felt the anticipation. She heard the unspoken wish. Heard the whispered desire. She saw hope.

And just as she feared, it was infectious.

"…it'd be better to just show you."

"YESSSSSSS!" Tommy cheered, causing them all to flinch as he broke character, jumping several feet into the air. "I knew this would work! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!"

"Tommy!" Abby snapped, trying to curtail unhealthy optimism. "Stop that! Nothing we've tried has worked."

"But this will! The Tommy knows!" he ignored her, his unbridled excitement tingly in the evening air. "It's gonna be amazing! Hoagie will be better, we can hang out and play video games again, oh oh oh, I can show him how I can eat three chili dogs at once now! This is the best night ever! Wait, no, tomorrow will be the best night ever because Hoagie will be back to normal!"

Abby watched with a growing sense of dread as Tommy went on and on, his mirthful babble fading to white noise as she couldn't help to foresee a grim future. A future where this endeavor was fruitless. A future where Tommy only became a twisted mirror of herself. A future where she would once again cry out to the jovial, bad-pun-shooting fly-boy who was gone forever. A hand on her shoulder made her look up at Nigel.

He gave a reassuring smile as he said, "Hey, we won't know until we try, right?"

She sighed, shrugging off his hand. "You can only try so many times before you have to face facts."

Nigel nodded, his expression understanding. "But Hoagie's our friend. We owe it to him to take a chance."

"I just don't wanna be—" she stopped herself, eyes focusing on Tommy. Her fists clenched. "I just don't want him to be disappointed again."

"We won't let him down."

Abby stared into the horizon, searching for answers in the fading sunlight. "Don't be so sure."

Wally looked between his two friends. Feeling helpless, he gave a stiff nod, mind made up. His mom may ground him for the rest of his life, but he knew what had to be done. "Then that settles it. Hoagie's my best friend too! Now I'm for sure going with you guys, and there ain't nothing you can do to stop—"

He was interrupted as a pair of plastic handcuffs quickly ensnared his wrists. Wally gawked at his newfound binding, before looking bewildered at a cheeky-looking Patrick Fulbright.

"Not so fast, teenager," Patrick said, smirking and wagging a finger. "You're coming with me. The Supreme Leader's orders were clear. Besides, you're still at the top of my most-wanted list! Okay, maybe not at the top anymore, but definitely still, like, top six."

"Ya still on about that betraying-you-guys crud? I thought we cleared that up!"

"What Numbuh 85 means, is that we gotta take you into custody. What else are loyal—and most certainly not doing something shady to help out old friends—operatives expected to do, right?" Sonia butted in, cutely batting her lashes Wally's way. She turned to do to same with Patrick, her coy gaze a bit more direct. "And if we just so happen to not be watching the airlock while flying over the Beetles' house and Numbuh 4 escapes, then I guess we can say we tried our best, right, Paddy?"

Patrick looked between his previous leader and his current Supreme Leader who was giving him a similar puppy-dog pout. Blushing, he started dragging Wally along to the SCAMPER. "Yeah, yeah. Guess things just happen, sometimes. But only just this once! I gotta rep to keep, y'know?"

"Don't worry your little head, my bestest Head-of-Decommissioning ever," Kuki cooed, giving the boy a gentle hair ruffle. Patrick swooned and shyly shuffled his feet at the attention. Kuki looked over to Abby and Nigel. "You guys should at least let us give you a ride to save time."

Abby shook her head. "A Supreme Leader who went missing a few hours ago being flagged on a SCAMPER with three teen signatures, all of whom happen to be her former teammates? Kids aren't that dumb, girl; they'll ask nosy questions."

"And I'm sure we could re-purpose one of the old exhibits back there," Nigel added, remembering the few defunct BOOSTBIKEs in the ship expo. "With all the spare 2x4 tech lying around, I bet I could get something functional again."

Tommy crashed midst the center of the group, them stumbling back as he swung his fedora haphazardly. "No need to fear, citizens. The Tommy's stupendous steed shall get us home faster than acne takes to a teen's ugly mug. Behold, the new-and-improved, Tommymobile!"

There was a low hum on a rocket engine in the distance, followed by the revving of tires against wood. Without warning, something crashed through the wall of the hangar, a plume of smoke and cedar chips blinding everyone close by. A lone headlight heralded the approach of a vehicle, a marvel of science and BMX sorcery. The cerulean gleam of the old Cruisemaster, now dubbed the Tommymobile, was quite the sight to behold after all these years. Tommy crossed his arms, face brimming with pride at his jet-fueled bicycle. "It's big enough for two. And it even has cup-holders!"

Abby raised a brow. "Think ya might wanna check your math there, kid."

"What do you—oh, I see your point," Tommy said after doing a head count of Nigel, Abby, and himself. He scratched his chin before snapping his fingers. "Ah, but as mentioned before, The Tommy always comes prepared!"

The young vigilante hooked two fingers in his mouth and let loose a mighty whistle. Shortly after, a faint ringing could be heard. It got louder and louder with each passing second until finally, something rolled along from the same hole in the wall the Tommymobile had made.

A smaller, sentient pink tricycle emerged, the ribbons on its handles fluttering valiantly against the breeze.

Nigel grimaced. He could've gone without running into that thing again. He turned to give Abby a sheepish look, but she only responded with a dry, thousand-yard stare. After a moment, he conceded the silent battle, slumping as he made towards the pink menace. "I'll take the tricycle…"

The hum of the ship's engines provided much-needed background noise, enveloping Numbuh Infinity and Numbuh Seventy-Four-point-Two-Three-Nine in a cocoon of sound as they glided through what the latter could only assume was the vastness of space. The absence of windows created an illusion of floating in an endless void, the only source of light emanating from the dim control panels.

Dave leaned against the metallic, his wooden features catching the subtle glow of the instrumentation. He traced the lines of the ship with his branchy fingers, a quiet sigh escaping him. Infinity, at the controls, stole a glance at his companion.

"So, this is it," Dave mused. His eyes fixed on an unseen point beyond the metal walls. "Heading back home after all this time."

Infinity nodded, his expression unreadable behind his sunglasses.

The ship moved smoothly, and for a moment, all that filled the space between them was the rhythmic pulse of the engines. Dave's eyes, full of memories and regrets, met Infinity's gaze.

"Do you ever wonder if we could have done things differently?" Dave asked, his voice carrying the weight of a thousand unspoken thoughts.

Infinity considered the question for a moment, steering the ship with practiced ease. "Sometimes, yeah."

Dave nodded, the lines etched into his bark-like skin deepening with another heavy sigh. "I never wanted things to turn out like this."

"None of us did," Infinity replied, his voice tinged with a mixture of understanding and regret. "But here we are, hurtling through the unknown, trying to make sense of it all."

As the ship sailed on, carrying them toward the unknown, the two former comrades fell into a contemplative silence. The echoes of past missions and the shadows of unspoken apologies lingered in the air, blending with the soft hum of the ship's engines. A quiet dialogue unfolded between the steady beats of the ship's heart and the unsaid words that floated in the void between them. Infinity adjusted the controls, guiding the ship through cosmic expanse. The silence lingered, heavy with hard truths and the weight of the past. After a while, he spoke, his voice a low murmur breaking the quiet. "You know, when I first took this role, mediating between kids, I thought it would be about brokering peace and understanding. Hugs and kisses, right? Little did I know, it would involve tearing friendships apart and making choices with consequences that reach across galaxies."

Dave glanced at Infinity, a mixture of sadness and understanding in his wooden eyes. "You never wanted any of this, did you?"

Infinity shook his head. "No, not like this. But sometimes, doing what's right means accepting the heavy burden that comes with it. It means making choices that break your heart."

Dave's gaze returned to the unseen point in the vastness of space, lost in contemplation. "I thought I could make a difference here. Protect Earth and maybe find a future worth fighting for."

Infinity's fingers danced over the controls, a melancholic melody in the confined space. "We all start with noble intentions."

A sudden jolt interrupted their quiet conversation as the ship entered turbulence. Dave gripped the wall for stability, and Infinity steadied the vessel with a practiced hand.

"But in the end, I was just selfish," Dave quietly admitted. His reflections around him serving as a silent jury. "I was willing to put an entire planet of children in jeopardy just to save my own skin."

Despite it all, Infinity chuckled. "Look at you, finally using human expressions correctly."

"This planet is a bad influence," Dave could only sadly laugh.

Minutes stretched into another seemingly endless stretch of silence. It wasn't an awkward silence, but rather one filled with the burden of shared memories, regrets, and the vastness of the universe outside the windowless confines.

"I'm sorry," Infinity finally said. Dave looked to his comrade, Infinity's gaze fully focused on the controls as he spoke. "Perhaps if I noticed sooner…I should've done more."

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic. There's plenty more I could've done," Dave said, a thoughtful look settling in. "In hindsight, it would've been terribly easy to make Numbuh 362 look crazy with my skills. A few video edits here, an audio scrub there and she would've been shipped to the loony bin faster than a hyperdrive in a parsec sprint."

"Yet you still gave in and helped her. Logic alludes even the best of us under duress."

"No, that wasn't it. Not completely," Dave interjected, mind going back to that fateful night. "There was this look in her eyes; angry, hurt, desperate for answers. Almost felt sorry for her. I mean, we did kinda go behind her back, take her best operative, and make her look like an idiot in the grand scheme of the KND's command structure."

Infinity opened his mouth to object but then made a quiet noise of hesitant agreement.

"True to her word, she deleted any dirt she had on me and we never spoke of it. It wasn't until her desertion that it hit me that maybe giving a jaded, emotionally volatile teenager access to high-clearance GKND intel wasn't the best appeasement strategy."

"That's…one way of putting it."

"If I had known what she was going to do, I would have never…I tried to fix it, to make her see reason," Dave said meekly. "But when you called and said Numbuh 1 was who they sent to handle it…panic and self-preservation won out, I guess."

"He wasn't my first choice, given his stake in all this," Infinity felt the need to clarify. "But…a mutual associate convinced me that maybe, it had to be personal for a better resolution. It had to be him."

"Which mutual associate?"

"You know very well who."

Dave's eyes widened. The ship felt lonelier as he became acutely aware of the absence of their third comrade. "Ah. How…how is Numbuh C55H72O5N4Mg these days?"

"Last I heard, on the other side of the galaxy. Taking personal leave to…self-reflect," Infinity said, a twinge of sadness tapering his tone. "I haven't spoken to her in a long time."

Dave decided to look at the floor. "Funny how we all fell out of touch after everything."

"Funny indeed." Another passage of silence went by, the beeps and buzzes of the control providing only so much stimulation. After a moment, Infinity set the controls to autopilot and looked to the ceiling. "Remember how we all used to meet every Wednesday for ice cream and to play Go-Fish?"

Dave snickered. "Under the guise of getting progress reports from Numbuh C55H72O5N4Mg and updates on my treehouse super growth formula. Really, it was just an excuse to get us together so you could just trash us every time."

"Not my fault you two totally sucked at the game," Infinity smirked. "What I wouldn't give for just one more Wednesday."

"You and me both," Dave said. He noticed the rattling of the ship eased to a complete stop. Underneath him, he felt the vibrations of the landing gear distending until the ship came to a stop with a subtle quake. Nerves crawled up his roots like termites as he gazed at the door. On the other side was the end of all he knew. "Well, home sweet home I guess. I'm morbidly curious to see how much more of the atmosphere the jerks have ruined while I was away."

Infinity watched as Dave gathered the few belongings he brought along with him. The diplomat reached into his breast pocket, fishing out a silver wristwatch.

"Here," he said, chucking it Dave's way. The tree child fumbled, nearly dropping it. Infinity went to open the pod-bay door. "Put it on. You'll need it for what comes next."

"I don't understand," Dave said, confused. As the metal clasped around his wrist, he gasped as it attached itself to his arm like glue. He tried to pry it off, but only became astonished as, after a flash of light, he found himself looking less like a tree and more like a ginger-haired, acne-ridden teenager with braces. "W-What in the name of gum—"

"It's a stabilizer for your human disguise. I'm ninety-nine-point-three percent sure it should stop that glitch and keep you this way for an indefinite time," Infinity explained. Dave was so flabbergasted to be human again that he missed the diplomat's sleight-of-hand, Infinity pocketing a pen-like device. "Your handlers have the release code to turn you back to normal. They'll do so when…they think the time is right."

"This doesn't make any sense," Dave said, his fingers pinching and stretching his pale, squishy new skin. "Why would I need a human disguise on Arboria-Prime?"

Infinity plastered a mild look of shock as he walked outside. "Who said anything about going to Arboria-Prime?"

"Not in the mood for your mind games, Infinity," Dave snipped, walking out of the ship to take in the environment. "You said I was going—"

Instead of the barren wastes of Arboria-Prime, Dave looked upon a familiar vibrant sanctuary of sustainability. A lush canvas of meticulously nurtured grass served as a base for a network of stone paths meandering through wildflowers and aromatic herbs. Beneath ancient oak and willow trees, hammocks and handwoven blankets beckoned, forming inviting pockets for tranquil repose. Solar-powered lights and recycled wind chimes provided an eco-friendly ambiance, and raised vegetable beds underscored the owners' commitment to a green lifestyle. A low-profile structure with reclaimed wood accents and expansive, energy-efficient windows welcomed Infinity and Dave. The latter looked on, shocked, while the former raised a knowing brow.

"I said it was time to go home," Infinity said, giving Dave a moment to let it all sink. "Your adoptive Earth caretakers' home, that is."

Dave could not believe his eyes. He didn't dare to dream of seeing this place again. He looked at Infinity, mind pacing with millions of inquiries yet not knowing how to form coherent words.

"Numbuh 74.239, for your actions, you are immediately stripped of your title, rank, and awesomely cool Galactic Science Division key-chain," Infinity said as the ship behind them compacted itself into a sliver object the size of a pinball. Infinity caught it in his hand and tucked it in his back pocket. "In accordance with galactic-level Important One regulation twenty-niner dash alpha-this-is-totally-not-made-up B, I hereby sentence you to live out the rest of your days in exile, here among the 'infected' populace of Earth."

Dave pinched himself, with a bit more force this time, to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"I've already informed your handlers," Infinity motioned towards the house. "They'll help you adjust and acclimate back into human society. Among…other things."

"But, I don't…" Dave said, a wetness building behind his eyes. "You mean I-I get to stay?"

Infinity sighed, taking off his sunglasses. He stared down at them, twirling them between his fingers as he sat down on a nearby rock. "Come on, man. You're supposed to be the smart one here."

The ginger-haired boy could only collapse beside Infinity, the long night finally taking its toll. He still couldn't believe it. "You're just letting me stay, after everything? What did the Important Ones say?"

"Oh, they've got bigger things to worry about," Infinity said, casually sniffing the air. The faint aroma of vegan tater-tot casserole wafted from the nearby house. How he wished he could stay for dinner. "I figured I'd go ahead and handle this for them. Be proactive, and all that."

"There's being proactive and then there's this," Dave softly laughed, not blind at all to the mercy being granted to him. "You're gonna be in soooo much trouble if they find out."

"I believe they were more concerned with the retrieval and prompt destruction of the evidence. Does it really matter how Miss McKenzie got it?" Infinity questioned. He palmed his sunglasses, his neutral reflection staring back at him. "I'll take care of it. It's the least I can do."

While totally not unexpected, Infinity still flinched as he found himself in a tight hug. Dave put his entire being into the gesture, and Infinity schooled his expression as he gave a simple pat on his old friend's back.

"Thank you," Dave said softly, silently crying as his nose sniffled. "I don't know how I could ever repay you for this."

"Maybe write a detailed academic study on the transition into actually getting to be a normal kid," Infinity said. Dave slowly retracted his embrace and stepped away. While the ex-scientist's back was turned, Infinity pulled out the pen-like device. He slowly put his sunglasses back on and his fingers flipped various dials on the pen. "I'd be quite interested to read your thesis."

"I'll be sure to do that," Dave said, eyes closed as he backed away. He wanted to savor this moment; the wind, the chirping crickets, the smell of his caretaker's—his maybe new official mom?—cooking. He wanted to cherish it for a few more seconds. Despite how subtle Infinity was trying to be, he was right about one thing: Dave was the smart one, and the logical part of him knew what had to come next. "See you around, Jerome."

"No."

Dave opened his eyes, Infinity held up the extended decommissioning laser pen, and with a sad smile said, "You won't."

With a flash, the regrets and follies of Numbuh Seventy-Four-point-Two-Three-Nine were forgotten as a confused Dave woke up in his bed.

A few blocks away, a somber boy in a nifty diplomatic tuxedo and sunglasses tenderly held an awesomely cool Science Division key chain as he admired the stars alone.