Okay, so to be fully honest, the football game thing is happening off screen. Because I have no idea how I want it to go and I have a better chapter planned to show off Firecracker's talents…and I get to write more adorable moments between Sonia and Firecracker. Anyways, let's begin.
"Oh this is going even better than I could have planned!" Firecracker smugly thought to herself as she pulled into the parking lot. Following her success at the homecoming game (which she surprised herself at by sticking around to watch the rest), other schools had been reaching out to her to do events alongside her already busy birthday party schedule, which had only gotten busier from parents in the audience getting exposed to her for the first time. Each offered more money than the last, so both her and Thomas were swimming in dough.
But if she was asked to do so, she would have done this job for free.
In a move that completely shocked her, Principal Sauerbraten, who Firecracker had heard was an adult villain waiting to happen, had reached out and asked her to do a show at his school, Gallagher Elementary, offering a handsome payment. And how could she turn down a performance at her old stomping grounds. Besides, she loved performing for kids.
"Excited to be back here?" Thomas, who was in the passenger seat, asked his long-time friend.
"Oh you have no idea!" Firecracker happily declared as she threw the car door open. "It's so awesome coming back!...The building looks a lot smaller than I remember though."
"Well you have gotten much bigger," Thomas replied with a smile as he grabbed his supplies out of the back seat, with Firecracker doing the same.
"Personally, I'm just grateful that this guy was smart enough to know to hold this outside," Firecracker said, prompting Thomas to flinch at the reminder of the last principal, who forced them to do their show in the gym, which resulted in the fire alarms getting set off and Firecracker narrowly escaping getting sued when she threatened to call her mother about the obvious safety hazard of letting someone set explosives off indoors.
"Let's…not think about that," Thomas requested and Firecracker was happy to agree. "So where did they say we need to be?"
"Behind the school," Firecracker responded as she pointed in the direction she thought they needed to go. "Just follow me."
"So what do you guys think this show is going to be?" Numbuh 2 asked his sectormates. Earlier that day, Principal Sauerbraten had told everyone that there would be a special show with two special guests and that they had all had to come outside for it. Most students were just happy that there weren't any classes.
"I'm not sure, but we need to remain on guard. This could be a trick from Sauerbraten," Numbuh 1 warned his team.
"Maybe it's a Rainbow Monkey show!" Numbuh 3 happily guessed as she clapped her sleeve covered hands together. Numbuh 4, who was seated next to her, let out a groan.
"If it's those cruddy Rainbow Monkey, I'd rather be in class!" He declared with a huff, not that Numbuh 3 paid him any mind.
"Well either way, looks like it's about to start," Numbuh 5 said as she noticed Principal Sauerbraten mounting the stage.
"Settle down, everyone!" Principal Sauerbraten called out. When no one really did, he sighed. "I zaid settle down!" This got him better results, much to his pleasure. "Zhat's better. Now, I have a zpecial zurprise for you all! I have gotten two party entertainers for you all to enjoy!" While this got most kids to cheer, the Delightful Children weren't pleased.
"This is a waste of time!" They called out, not that anyone paid them any mind beyond some eyerolls.
"So please behave and give them a warm welcome!" Principal Sauerbraten finished before stepping off to the side as two figures dressed in matching red suits, top hats and holding canes, one of which had a firework taped to the top, came out.
"Is…is that Numbuh 451 and Numbuh Red 7!?" Numbuh 1 realized.
"Numbuh 5 thinks it is!" Numbuh 5 agreed. "Wasn't expecting Sauerbraten to get them, that's for sure!"
"Wait, those two party entertainers are operatives?" Numbuh 2 asked. Numbuhs 3 and 4 looked equally confused, having only heard about the duo from the various ads they put up advertising their party entertainment business.
"They were," Numbuh 5 began, a fond smile appearing on her face. "Some of the best too. Numbuh 451 made most of the modern explosives in the Kids Next Door and Numbuh Red 7 was so good at forgery, some people couldn't tell they were fakes even when they didn't do what they were supposed to. But they got decommissioned years ago."
"Did you ever work with 'em?" Numbuh 4 asked.
"I didn't, but I think Numbuh 5 ran a couple missions with Numbuh 451," Numbuh 1 revealed. Numbuh 5 just nodded.
"She could be a handful…but Numbuh 5 looked up to Numbuh 451." She admitted. "She and Cree were pretty close back then." At that, everyone realized that she didn't want to talk about it anymore and so turned back to the stage, where the two former operatives were clearly enjoying the praise.
"Ah thank you, thank you!" The former Numbuh 451 thanked the crowd with a smile. "You're all too kind. So, let's get things out of the way. I'm Ava, but everyone calls me Firecracker! And my friend here is Thomas!"
"Charmed to meet you all," Thomas replied with a smile as he looked out of the crowd. "My partner and I are very excited to put on a show for you all!"
"So let's get going!" Firecracker quickly chimed in. "Now, I know fireworks aren't as cool when it's not night time, but I've still got a show for you all! Now check THIS out!" With that, she quickly pulled out a soccer ball, shoved a firework inside and lit the fuse, causing many of the kids to gasp, especially when she started to dribble it. "Relax, I'm a trained expert in all things awesome! So I know what I'm doing!" As if to prove her point, she kicked the soccer ball high into the air, where it safely exploded and caused all the kids to cheer.
"Cool…" Numbuh 4 gushed with stars in his eyes. That was the pattern for the next couple minutes, with Firecracker pulling out various fireworks and sparklers and doing some crazy stunt or trick with them. Everyone was mostly impressed by how she managed to avoid setting herself or someone else on fire.
"Okay, so I'm gonna need a break in a minute, but for my last trick…I'm gonna need a volunteer," Firecracker declared with a smirk. "How many of you know the story of William Tell?" This got several gasps and excited whispers. "I'm gonna need someone brave for this, just warning you all!" Several kids wasted no time in raising their hands eagerly, causing Firecracker to scan the crowd. As much as she really wanted to pick the snobby group of five near the back, she noticed someone who looked way better for the job. "Uh…blond kid in the orange hoodie!"
"Alright!" Numbuh 4 cheered as he mounted the makeshift stage.
"What's your name, kid?" Firecracker asked, holding her cane to him as if it were a microphone.
"I'm Wally!" He proudly declared. "So what do you need me to do?"
"Someone's excited!" Firecracker marveled. "But come with me." With that, she led him over to the other side of the stage before pulling out two things. One was a strange looking ball and the other was a pair of sunglasses. "Gonna need you to balance that ball on your head and put the sunglasses on."
"What are they for?" Numbuh 4 asked as he did both things.
"Well blown up apples are really messy and the sunglasses are so we match!" Firecracker declared as she pulled out her own pair of sunglasses and put them on. "Now stand really still. I don't want to hit you with this." With that, she pulled out a mock up crossbow that had a firework rested on the top. Everyone held their breath as Firecracker lit the fuse and took aim.
"I can't wait!" Numbuh 3 declared as she nervously hugged Numbuh 5. Seconds seemed like an eternity as the fuse slowly ran down until the firework finally launched forward.
And hit the ball dead on, causing it to explode and revealing that it had been full of candy, which was now getting launched into the crowd, prompting the crowd to go insane.
"Now, give a big hand for my friend here!" Firecracker declared as she put a hand on Numbuh 4's shoulder while also handing him a bag of candy all for himself. Numbuh 4 proudly walked back to his seat grinning smugly all the while.
"Now, I believe it is my turn for an event," Thomas spoke up, causing Firecracker to take a step back and, rather comically, fall back into a folding chair she had set up. "Now, I may not be as exciting as my friend, but I believe I should be able to entertain you. Now, as you may have guessed, I am an artist! However, I would like some help coming up with stuff to draw." With that, he took a seat behind the easel he'd been setting up. "Now just start yelling stuff out."
"THE PLAYGROUND!" One kid called out.
"A giant robot!" Numbuh 2 chimed in.
"A rainbow monkey!" Numbuh 3 called out, causing Numbuh 4 to groan again.
"A really big dinosaur!" Someone else chimed in.
"A giant spaceship!" Yelled out another kid. Thomas worked quickly and easily. Everything seemed to come naturally to him, even with all the kids calling him to add different things. After about five minutes, he stood up.
"Alright, I think that's enough," He said with a smile. "Now…who wants to see it?" This naturally got everyone cheering, prompting him to reveal his creation, which seemed to be, primarily, a battle between a rainbow monkey piloting a giant robot and a dinosaur riding a spaceship on the playground. This got everyone cheering once again. "Yes, yes, I'm told I'm quite an impressive artist. But now…I want to see what you can all do. Firecracker, can you help me roll out the canvas?"
"Sure thing, buddy!" Firecracker replied as she stood up. Grabbing a large piece of paper, she and Thomas unrolled it along the stage.
"Now, I've got a bunch of crayons, colored pencils and even some paint. Firecracker and I want all of you to come up and add something. Make sure to draw small and leave some room for everyone! We want you all to experience the whimsy of what we brought for you all." Thomas explained. "And try not to trample each other, we've got plenty of time and space for you all." The kids in the crowd all wasted no time in rushing for the stage, with Firecracker making sure that Sonia got pretty much first track at the paper, as did her friends.
"Thanks Firecracker," Sonia said as she finished up.
"Anything for my little sister!" Firecracker said with a happy smile as she playfully ruffled Sonia's hair, prompting the younger girl to laugh before pulling her big sister into a hug. Once they let go, Sonia rushed off to go help her friends while Firecracker kept watch on everything. It didn't take her long to notice something wrong.
"Hey! Give it back!" One kid begged the Delightful Children, who had pulled away the crayon he was using. The Delightful Children were about to taunt the boy, only for the crayon to subsequently get yanked out of their hands by Firecracker, who had been watching and wasted no time in handing it back to the kid.
"Thank you!" The boy happily thanked the older girl as he returned to his drawing. Firecracker just gave the kid a thumbs up before glaring at the Delightful Children.
"So you're the brats my sister tells me about? Can't believe you look more stuck up up close," She sneered as she crossed her arm.
"We don't need to justify ourselves to an immature party entertainer," The Delightful Children huffed as they headed off stage. Firecracker was about to toss out another comment, only for something about the Delightful Children to make her pause. Why did they feel so…familiar?
"Firecracker? Are you alright," Thomas asked his friend, causing her to quickly shake her head.
"Yeah, I'm fine," She replied. "Just…got a weird sense of deja vu." Firecracker shook her head again. "Let's just get ready to wrap things up." Thomas didn't feel the need to question it. Once every kid had finished up, the two entertainers held the hodge podge of various pictures of varying quality, causing all the kids to cheer as they saw their handiwork.
"And do not worry! You will be able to see this in the hallway for quite a time!" Thomas revealed to the kids. "Now, as sad as we are to say, this will be our final trick."
"And we're gonna mix our skills together!" Firecracker proudly boasted. All the kids oooed and ahhed at that as Firecracker pulled out some paint tubes tied to some firecrackers while Thomas unrolled another large piece of paper. The kids were already cheering as they realized what was happening. Soon, the air was full of exploding bits of paint, most of which rained down onto the paper. A bit of it hit the Delightful Children, causing the kids nearby to laugh and cheer louder. Once everything was done, Firecracker and Thomas removed their hats and each took a flourished bow.
It was good to be doing what they were good at.
Hey look! You get some Sector V! And also the Delightful Children, who seemed to…trigger something with Firecracker.