Cowritten by PuniPuni
Story is also published on AO3.
"NO! STOP!"
9L tossed and turned in her sleep. The headband was pumping in distressing scenarios to the nekomata that seemed real. Being the only tester of the headband, she received every experiment of it.
9L attempted to grab above her head. She was given the illusion she was not touching anything, but she pulled with all her might. However, the headband was firmly attached to her head with no chance of coming off with her force.
In the window above, Infinity was carefully balancing the distress levels for Numbuh 9L.
"Are you sure you don't want me touching that, Numbuh Infinity?" 74.239 asked in worry as he saw the distress below. Near to him, Numbuh 71.562 was reading the encephalogram from 9L's brain waves on the other side of the room. He eyed the two awkwardly with their tension.
"I'm sure of it. Your sympathy encroaches on my research," Infinity replied
74.239 rolled his eyes out of Infinity's view. "I'm the scientist around here! Don't you have any idea that…"
As the two continued to argue, 71.562 looked down onto the distressed girl. Her sweating and breathing increased. He looked back the encephalogram again, buzzing in sound. The scribbles of the encephalogram's paper started to increase in size.
71.562 looked below to see that 9L had reached for the top of the headband with shaking hands. She started to pull upwards on the device more and more until her body realized that she could finally feel it. She started to yank with all her might.
"You two, we have a problem!" 71.562 exclaimed.
Infinity and 74.239 ceased tampering with the scenario module to lean over to the glass to see the scene below. 9L had tears streaming down her face as she yanked the headband. She was nearly bawling.
"ABORT!" 71.562 yelled. 74.239 came close to the scenario module but was pushed back by Infinity. The kid with the sunglasses shakily dialed the switch down to the peaceful mode.
"I can't stand watching this anymore! I'd rather be back on Earth and get ten wedgies from teenager homo sapiens! Do you have any sympathy for your fellow operatives, Numbuh Infinity?" 71.562 protested. His fellow scientist nodded in agreement.
Infinity stared at his hands which started to shake. He gritted his teeth and inhaled sharply.
"Numbuh Infinity?"
The boy in the suit sighed, then licked the side of his hand slowly.
The scientists looked at each other awkwardly.
Infinity licked the side of his hand again. Then once more. He clenched his fists.
"I need to eat something. Excuse me," he calmly addressed, pushing himself between the two other operatives, exiting the room. The two were left staring at each other.
"9L!" they both exclaimed in unison.
They rushed to the window, seeing that the girl was calming down. Her encephalogram readings toned down to normal, and a faint smile could be seen from a distance.
"Momma…" she muttered in her language softly.
74.239 pinched the top of his nose, sighing deeply. "You see what I had to go through her first round? He's basically torturing her!"
71.562 continued to keep his eyes on the girl. "Do you think he really wants to test the headband, or is there some other motive?" he whispered.
"Of course he wants the test the Happy Headband." 74.239 rolled his eyes. "He wants to use it on you-know-who. But that licking…"
The two boys looked over to see that the simulation for Numbuh 9L finished. She seemed calm.
"Do you think he's still experiencing symptoms of the human transformation?" 71.562 asked.
His partner narrowed his eyes in response. He bit his lower lip in a sense of curiosity. He then turned to the shorter boy. "I'm going to go see what's up with him. Keep an eye on 9L, I don't want to have to deal with her crying again."
"Wait, wha—?!" 71.562 turned around to see him walk away to follow where the other operative went. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"You're in the fifth grade, you keep saying. You should be happy to do the science thing right now!" Before closing the door behind him, 74.239 faced his partner with his chest up high. "My curiosity should protect this cat."
Lizzie awoke in the morning stretching out her arms. She sighed deeply from how well rested she was. She then shivered.
Stepping out of bed, she noticed the heavy snowfall coming from outside her window. She stared at the beautiful sheets of white that blanketed the neighborhood. She had not seen snowfall this intense.
Even slightly intimidated about the below freezing conditions, the white sheets of the snow that glittered galvanized Lizzie as she pressed her face up against the window. Her pupils became wide, then realized she needed to put her glasses on. She then took in the beauty of the winter season.
There was a knock on Lizzie's door.
"Come in."
Bonnie opened the door gently. "Lizzie, you're going to want to hear this."
Lizzie walked to the living room. Bonnie gave her sister a warm blanket, then turned the radio volume up.
"It's official, kids! It's a snow day! Schools included are Myers Elementary, Kendall Prep, and… Gallagher Elementary! So rock out, kids, have fun, and throw a snowball for me!" the radio announced.
"Snow day?" Lizzie tilted her head.
"There's too much snow for the bus to bring you to school," Bonnie replied.
"Then can't I just walk?"
Bonnie chuckled at Lizzie's comment. "School's closed. You get the day off."
Lizzie's confused expression switched into a happy face to realize why she should be excited.
"YAY!" Lizzie squealed. She removed the blanket to run toward the window in the living room. She saw different kids in the neighborhood outside playing. When she reached for the window glass, she hesitated, shivering.
"Will I be all right outside?" Lizzie whispered.
Bonnie walked over to put the blanket back onto Lizzie. "What do you mean? It's your day off!"
"I know, but…" Lizzie turned to look out the window again. "The snow is beautiful. My home planet doesn't have seasons, and I'm afraid of getting sick or hurt from the cold!"
"Oh Lizzie, you'll be fine! If you're a human, you'll handle it."
"I don't know, Bonnie… I think I'll just stay inside today."
Mrs. DeVine walked down the stairs to see her girls in the living room. She was carrying a sleepy Mike with her.
"Good morning girls," she yawned as she went to pet both their heads. "Happy snow day, Lizzie."
Mrs. DeVine hummed to herself as she walked into the kitchen. Her son had finally closed his eyes in her arms, until seconds later, the phone rang. Mike opened his eyes as Mrs. DeVine gently put him down. He clung onto his mother's robe, leaning against her.
"Hello?" Mrs. DeVine answered. Bonnie and Lizzie looked to their left to see what the call was about. Mike trudged over his oldest sister once he realized he was not going to get any attention from his mother.
"…Uh huh," Mrs. DeVine covered the phone to face Lizzie. "It's Nigel. He wants to talk to you."
Curious, Lizzie came over into the kitchen to hold onto the phone. "Hello?" she cooed.
"Hey Lizzie," Nigel sniffled. "Yesterday, I had a pretty bad fight with the Common Cold, so I'm really sick…"
Lizzie twirled the phone cord as she smiled upon bearing her boyfriend's voice, despite congested.
"…And I don't want to interrupt my team from making sure the snow day is perfect for kids to play. What I'm trying to ask is… can you come over and keep me company? My dad's making me sit around and do nothing," he whined.
Lizzie giggled as she twirled the phone cord. "Of course, Nigie," she cooed. "You poor thing, always working so hard…"
"Hehe, aww Lizzie…"
"I'll make you something special to help you feel better, OK?"
Nigel laughed nervously. "Well, all right…"
Lizzie kissed her end of the phone. "Bye, Nigie!"
When Lizzie hung up the phone, she turned her smiling face to her family, who were giggling at her. Even Mike was silently chuckling.
"What's so funny?!" Lizzie hissed.
"Oh Nigie, I'm only your girlfriend for my test subject, but I'm going to kiss you through the phone! Muah, muah!" Bonnie mocked. Mrs. DeVine clearly looked as if she did not want to laugh at that joke against her youngest daughter, but she could not help but chuckle behind her hand.
Lizzie clenched her fists while observing her sister laugh at her flirtatious behavior.
"Oh Nigie, I wanna see you, I'm blushing!" Bonnie continued to mock. Lizzie looked over to the silver fridge to see that her reflection was, in fact, blushing. She covered her cheeks.
"SHUT UP!" she yelled with a redder face. "STOP LAUGHING!"
Mrs. DeVine nudged Bonnie in attempt to discipline her without a chuckle. "Bonnie, stop laughing at your sister. You fell in love with a boy on accident too."
Bonnie ceased laughing to glare at her mother, then pout at her insult.
"You too, Mike," the mother nudged the toddler. Despite him not making noise, he covered his mouth in guilt.
"Hmph!" Lizzie pouted then turned around. She realized she was caught in a corner: She really had fallen in love with Nigel.
"Oh, don't be so upset, Lizzie. Doesn't it make your job easier?" Bonnie remarked. Mrs. DeVine nudged her again.
"I guess you're right," Lizzie sighed. "I just need to make him feel better, how can I do that?"
"Make some soup for him. That always makes humans feel better," Mrs. DeVine mentioned, walking in the direction back to the stairs. Mike followed her.
Lizzie hesitated. A smile came across her face. "If I can only make Nigie a soup today, so be it."
Lizzie had spent her morning concocting a soup that would feel and taste similar to something she would consume back on her home planet. She explained to her older sister that what she wanted to make was supposed to be a remedy that doubles as a weapon when sprayed but heals whoever drinks it.
"Are you sure this will make Nigel feel better?" Bonnie asked. "I don't recall ingredients like this making for a normal type of soup for humans."
"Oh, what do you know? You don't have any taste buds!"
Bonnie wished to counter her sister's argument, but she had nothing to say.
Walking upstairs back to her room, she noticed her grandmother had recently woken up. Upon seeing her, she stopped her in her tracks.
"Oh, Grandma! I need your help," Bonnie mentioned, placing her hand on her shoulder.
"Clyde wants to take me to the aquarium in the city for a date, but the problem is… I've never been to one. I don't know what to expect," she expressed. "Also, Lizzie subscribed to a real estate magazine, should I be worried about her new Earthly fixation?" she whispered through gritted teeth.
Bonnie's grandmother laughed. "Oh, it's just another one of her Earthly interests. But as for the date, there's this wonderful place called the library, and even the internet."
Bonnie hesitated, looking away. "…I'm mostly concerned about not being a smart enough human, you know. I don't have experiences an average 22-year-old would have."
"And you thought talking to me would help? I was made in the same lab as you under the same kid-scientists. I don't even know all fifty states."
Bonnie sighed, brining her eyes up to her grandmother. She whispered something that came from deep in her mechanical heart.
"I wish I was a real human."
"Oh, Honey…" her grandmother reached her hands to hold her granddaughter's. "You know why we were built."
"And Mom has told me that already. Could you please not tell her we had this conversation?" Bonnie started to whisper.
Bonnie's grandmother made a zipper motion with her fingers against her lips.
"Thank you, Grandma." Bonnie smiled, going up to kiss her on the cheek.
When Bonnie went into her own room, she sighed to herself. She felt a sense of sadness that she was not real. After a while, she heard her cellphone ringing. She noticed it was a number she did not recognize. Curious, she answered anyway.
"Hello?" She answered.
"Hello? Is this Bonnie DeVine?"
"…Shawn?"
On the other end of the phone, the young adult was stuttering to himself. "Look, about that party the other night… I just wanted to call to apologize. I didn't know those guys were weird around girls. And uh, I apologize for not calling sooner…"
Bonnie looked out of the window to see that the snow was continuing to fall onto the yard. She noticed that the plants in the yard started to fall from the pressure from the snow, squeezing them down.
"Clyde hasn't spoken to me in a bit. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable around me considering how close I am to him. …Are you there?"
"Yeah, I'm here. That's very kind of you, Shawn."
"Oh, thanks…"
"Apology accepted. Not many boys would have the guts to call."
Lizzie put her special soup in a thermos. She put on her winter jacket, a garish yellow with a pink accent. She insulted the colors with indigo boots and gloves.
"I'm going to go see Nigie now! Bye!" she announced before leaving the house.
The cold air and snow brushed against Lizzie's face like a party popper's burst. She shivered slightly, but started walking toward her boyfriend's house, as it was easy. Just follow the large tree.
Many kids were outside enjoying the day to their heart's content. Snowballs, snow angels, and snow forts. Lizzie had only seen scenes like these on television.
To her left, a group of local operatives have stepped in the snow to indent the letters to spell "KND ROOL!" on them. To her right, a small pond was frozen with ice. It occupied three kids that were playing hockey, tossing the puck around to each other.
An operative sitting above the carved out snow path came down to spread her arms out in front of Lizzie. "Hey! No non-operatives on this path allowed! You could step on a hamster, you know!"
A hamster dashed between both the kids' legs to catch up along the path.
"Well, I'm making a special delivery to Nigie to make him feel better. SO MOVE IT!" she yelled.
The operative simply saluted to her hesitantly, allowing her to cross. The same hamster from before then came to dart to her right instead.
Lizzie saw Numbuhs 2 and 4 up ahead, waving at them and shouting. "Hey guys!"
Unenthusiastically, the two boys frowned at her appearance. "Hey Lizzie," they huffed.
The girl came closer to the two to explain her presence. "My poor sweetheart Nigie is sick in bed, and I wanted him to get better fast so he can enjoy this perfect snow day with me! So I whipped up an extra special batch of my delicious homemade chicken banana fritter soup!"
The two boys threw her a confused expression.
"I even put in extra curly fries!"
Lizzie unscrewed the cap from her thermos to let the soup air out a bit. The smell from the container made the two boys gag.
"You have to age the gristle just right."
As Numbuh 2 coughed, Numbuh 4 spoke up about her terrible cooking.
"For crying out loud, lady! I thought you wanted to make him feel better, not kill him!"
Lizzie faced away from them. "Hmph! Shows what you know!" She then walked off away from them. "At least my Nigie has a sense of taste!"
"Ha, he won't after having a spoonful of that!" Numbuh 2 mocked, attempting to keep the sentence out of earshot. However, Lizzie picked up on the comment.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"
Startled, they awkwardly smiled at her. "Uh, Say hi to Numbuh 1 for me!" Numbuh 2 nervously laughed.
Lizzie's demeanor became friendly again. "I thought so," she smiled.
Lizzie continued her walk to the Uno household. As she came closer to the treehouse, she noticed that large bus walkers on four legs started to patrol the area. From the roofs of the vehicles, long wires came from out of the top to grapple kids, throwing them into the bus. From above, there a flying bus that held the dark aura of the fourth grade president. As the operatives attempted to throw their snowballs and trip their vehicles, their efforts were continuously ineffective to the president's fleet. Lizzie merely rolled her eyes at this.
At the doorstep of the Uno residence, Lizzie knocked impatiently.
"Coming!" was echoed by Nigel's father. He opened the door to see the young girl with her basket and thermos. "Why, it's you, Lizzie! How thoughtful of you to come on by to give my dear boy some company. Come on in," Mr. Uno offered.
Lizzie shook the snow off her coat and hat to put them on the coat hanger.
"He's upstairs in his room. If you need me, I'll be down here reading the paper."
Lizzie went up the stairs holding her thermos tightly. "Nigie!" she called. "I'm here!"
She opened the door to Nigel's bedroom to see him smile of relief that his girlfriend came to keep him company. He looked awful, curled up in a green blanket with worn out socks on his feet. "Heya Lizzie," he sniffled. Nigel sneezed as he sat up on his bed.
"I made you some extra special soup to help you feel better on the one snow day of the year!" As Lizzie unscrewed the cap of the thermos, Nigel caught a whiff of the nasty soup. He gagged enough to make himself more nauseous.
"Come on, Nigie. My soup will make you feel better!" she cooed as she poured some of it into the red cap. "I even put in extra scoops of cottage cheese for roughage!"
Nigel sneezed again, sniffling up his mucus. "You know, I'd really rather not—" he attempted to politely decline.
"TRY IT!" she interrupted, holding the cap closer to her boyfriend.
Nigel took the cap with both of his hands. He slowly attempted to drink the soup, but the taste was much worse than the smell. He gagged and spit out what he could. Lizzie swayed her arms with the fuzzy feeling of doing a good deed for him.
Nigel paused to listen to the noises outside. Laser blasts and large stomping could be heard within earshot.
"What's that?" Nigel asked, lifting his right ear up.
"That's the mud I put in for extra minerals!" Lizzie informed as she poured the soup from the cap back into the thermos.
"Not that," Nigel scoffed. He stood out from his bed and pointed at the scene outside of his window. He saw the busses grapple kids to take them inside. "THAT!"
"Oh, that's just dumb Jimmy trying to force everyone to go to some stupid assembly today," she brushed off.
Nigel pressed his hands against the glass. "I've got to help the others!"
"Feeling better already, huh? I told you my soup worked wonders!"
Nigel sneezed straight onto his window, snot smeared across the glass. Lizzie stuck her tongue out in disgust.
"I'm going," Nigel announced quietly. He stepped out of his room before his girlfriend could call to him again.
"Nigie!"
"Yes?" He turned around.
Lizzie held the thermos with both her hands, reaching it out into the light. "Use the soup!"
"…What?!"
"It's fortified!" She beamed as she tossed it to Nigel.
"Ugh, whatever…" he brushed off as started to run off. Putting his coat and boots on, he sent for the F.L.I.E.R.P.L.A.C.E. in his living room to help aid his teammates.
Lizzie watched him take off from his bedroom. "Good luck, Nigie!"
A gust of wind brushed behind Lizzie. She looked behind her.
"…Hello?"
It was quiet. To her senses, she felt as if she was being watched. "…Mr. Uno?" She called out, but he was not upstairs with her at all.
Lizzie thought to herself she needed the soup. It was part weapon she had just given to her Nigie.
Dropping her shoulders, Lizzie exited the bedroom. Two thumping sounds were heard from behind, but before she could turn around, she was grasped tightly by the hands of two honor roll students.
"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU—"
A book was placed across Lizzie's face to silence her. Another book tightly pressed her arms against her back.
To Lizzie's right, she saw a blond honor roll student project a hologram call to Jimmy.
"Report!"
"The target has been acquired," the blond nerd spoke.
"Excellent. Bring her my ship."
The signal ended, so the book-armored-boys continued to drag Lizzie outside the Uno residence. She attempted to scream for help, noticing Mr. Uno in the kitchen, but his face was blocked out by the newspaper.
Dragged through the snow, Lizzie saw the damage of the battle against the fourth grade president. The book was released from her mouth, allowing her complain, but the cold without her winter coat made her shiver. She became vulnerable enough for the two honor roll students to grab each of her hands to drag her through the snow.
The main ship in the sky landed near the ground to allow the honor roll students inside. Finally in a warmer space, Lizzie recognized a girl in front of her. It was another one of her classmates, Anna.
"Let him know we have arrived."
Anna had her brows furrowed in a stern expression of slight resentment. She said nothing, then turned away.
"Let me go! Get off!" Lizzie complained. She attempted to tug away from them, but her human body remained useless to the nerds. She thought to herself if she was in her true form, she could defeat them easily.
The two boys dragged her into the lair of Jimmy. It was a large gray room with concrete floors. A small stairway to the large windows peered onto the neighborhood. It was a magnificent view, but Lizzie had no time to take it in.
"LET ME GO!" Lizzie protested. She squirmed in their grip to attempt to release herself. As the honor roll students dragged her closer to Jimmy, they finally released her. They curled up like armadillos into their books to roll to the side of the room, awaiting more instructions from their president. Lizzie's eyes followed them until she realized she was free. "What's going on here, Jimmy?!"
"Please, don't call me Jimmy," he started to converse. He reached a muted sofa to her right to sit down and cross his legs.
Lizzie marched up the stairs closer to the president. "So what would you like me to call you, besides a bully?" she emphasized.
"Oh we'll get to that in a moment," he cooed. "Have a seat."
Jimmy gently pat the space on the couch next to him. Lizzie hesitated at first, but she followed to sit on the very edge, uncomfortable with the request.
"Tell me, Lizzie. Have you ever thought about becoming a queen when you grow up?"
Lizzie faintly smiled. "Sure! That or a real estate appraiser."
Jimmy hesitated from the follow up. However, he continued to progress. "What would you say if I could make your dream come true today?" He traced his fingers to closely follow Lizzie, scooting himself closer to her.
"Oh, I don't know!" she purred, holding her hands together. Taking it as an invitation to info-dump, she deluged her knowledge onto him. "…Housing construction is weak this quarter, and the entire region is in a buying slump! And what, with all this re-zoning taking pla—"
"No, no, NO!" Jimmy hissed.
Lizzie gripped her hands onto the couch then, leaning away from him.
Jimmy cleared his throat, pursuing on. "Your dream of becoming a queen," he proposed, placing his hand onto her back, further coming close to her.
"You could do that?"
"Yeah I could. If instead of calling me Jimmy, you call me your boyfriend," he flirted. He leaned against her, plucking his lips together as an attempt to kiss her.
Lizzie became paled in horror as she realized what was going on. She closed her arms and legs together to push away from him. She took his arm on her back to push it away, freeing herself from his grasp. She then jumped from the couch to move away from him. "Oh! That's really sweet of you to ask, Jimmy, but I'm kind of seeing someone right now. Nigel Uno! Perhaps you know him?" she smiled. "But don't worry about it, I'm sure there's some girl in the fourth grade that would love to go out with you," she suggested as she walked back, passing Jimmy to face the large windows of the snow falling in front of them. "…despite your fashion sense," she added, rolling her eyes to the black cloaked outfit he was wearing.
"ENOUGH!" he boomed. Jimmy jumped off from the couch to march closer to Lizzie. "I did this for you. Turned evil for you. Ruled this school with an iron fist, so you would like me!" Jimmy pointed his finger at Lizzie close enough to merely touch her, so she crouched low to avoid him. "Well forget you! I won't let your stupid feelings get in the way of my plans!"
"You can't make me like you!" she continued to protest.
"Oh, can't I?" Jimmy walked over to a small stand that was cloaked with a white sheet. "You see, the queen's crown is really…" once he grabbed the cloak, he yanked it off harshly, revealing a familiar device with a large crown atop of it.
"A BOYFRIEND HELMET!"
Lizzie gasped. She recognized the device, but she felt confused about what she knew the intended purpose was for. She then remembered something rare among humans she was taught before.
"…You want a boyfriend?"
"NO!" he chastised. "I rewired it to work on you!" he announced. "Prepare her for the ceremony!"
The two honor roll students rolled up in their book armor to grab Lizzie again as she attempted to escape.
"NIGIE WILL STOP YOU! So— PFFT!" Lizzie stuck her tongue out to spit at him.
"I DON'T THINK SO! If he survived the crash, he'll never penetrate my deadly defense perimeter! So PFFT to you too!" he stuck out his tongue in return.
They spit at each for a while, Lizzie continuing to mock him as the honor roll students continued to drag her out of his lair.
Lizzie struggled as best as she could, but her hands were pulled by the honor roll nerds onto a large theater stage. In front, there was an empty theater room with hundreds of seats. To the sides, large drapes of Jimmy covered the walls. The nerds dragged her toward a faded turquoise chair with rope next to it.
"HEY! What are you doing?! Stop!"
The nerds forced her to sit down in the chair, restraining her arms down to tie rope around them. The boys then tied the second rope around her body to the chair so she had less flexibility.
Lizzie attempted to stand, yanking her arms up, but her feet could not reach the ground from the height of the chair.
"HELP! SOMEBODY, HELP!" she shrieked as a final attempt. She was quickly silenced from a blindfold wrapping tightly around her mouth.
The honor roll students giggled to themselves. The blond one made kissing noises to her, and the freckled one grabbed her braids to swing them over her shoulders. Finally, they curled up into rolls, exiting the room on their right from where they entered.
Lizzie was left all alone. She continued to struggle to release herself. She squished her pinky down, but nothing happened.
This is the third time Lizzie had felt trapped and hopeless. This time, she was completely vulnerable and incapable of moving. She felts her eyes water for a moment, thinking about something her sister told her.
Faint footsteps were heard from Lizzie's left. They were slower, filling the room with an echo. Lizzie could only turn her head to see who it was.
Anna held her head down low with a clipboard in both her hands, lowering it down to cover her knees.
She stood a good distance away from Lizzie in front of her, stopping in her tracks to look the victim in the eyes.
Lizzie attempted to shout "Anna, help me!" but the piece of cloth covering her mouth muffled noises incomprehensible to her.
"I didn't know… Jimmy liked you like that, Lizzie."
All Lizzie could do was narrow her eyebrows at Anna.
"I'm sorry. I did so many bad things… I went to the Delightful Children, they made a robot of Jimmy, he went to Father and…"
All Lizzie could do was listen. It seemed the guilt of what Anna was now spilling became too much to bottle up.
"And I kept helping him because… I like him. But he likes you. I did all that for nothing. I help the Delightful Children build all this for nothing," Anna monologued as she turned away. The light from the stage hit her face as she looked out onto the empty seats. She deeply sighed.
"You probably hate me now after telling you this. I just wonder…"
As Anna turned around, her glasses shone in the stage light, reflecting them back to Lizzie's pinky finger, coincidentally to her C.H.I.P..
"Do you think I can still make things right?"
Lizzie did not let Anna's heartfelt ramble persuade her, but if it meant she could free Lizzie, then she would do what it took.
Lizzie nodded her head, putting on a sincere gesture to let Anna know she believed so.
The sound of the doors from the audience's end squeaking open interrupted the two. The hall monitors were bringing in kids with handcuffs to sit on the rows of chairs.
"Oh no!" Anna whispered. "I'll go get help. Hang tight!" she promised as she ran out of sight.
Lizzie grunted. She was so close to being free. All she could do was now stare as hundreds of fourth graders were piled into the room by hall monitors, forced to sit down cuffed by chains.
Lizzie looked up. The concave shape of the boyfriend helmet attached to a rope eerily shadowed her below. Lizzie remembered how she used the device against Nigel when she had no care in the universe for him. He was a tool to bring back to the GKND, a helmet making the process easier.
However, Lizzie loved Nigel now. She wanted to respect humans more than she used to. She would never touch a boyfriend helmet again after what it did to Nigel. He was a boy who fought to protect her. They held hands, they cuddled, they kissed…
In fact, Lizzie was expecting Nigel to save her. She knew he would.
Bonnie had driven through the harsh snow to reach the city. It was a long drive with enough traffic to drive her mad.
Parking was not easy either. She circled the lot a few times before finding a spot.
Bonnie had entered inside. She saw her boyfriend and sighed.
"Hey, where have you been?!" she complained.
"Hey Babe, I—"
Bonnie lifted her hands in front of her face. "Oh come on, you could have at least called to pick me up!"
"I-I'm sorry,"
"Do you have any idea how long it took me to get here?!"
Clyde paused, remorse filled his eyes.
Bonnie pinched the top of her nose. "I'm sorry, I'm starting to sound like my mom… or sister…"
"I could call you beforehand if—"
"Just forget it."
Clyde sighed. He looked away from her, stepping aside as to try and find something to say. He pressed his fist near his mouth.
"Shawn called."
Clyde felt a fire rush in his body, turning to his girlfriend immediately. "Oh? What did he say?" he expressed with a concerned voice.
"He apologized."
Clyde placed his hand on his chest, sighing a relief as if he just had his life saved. "Good. I knew he'd come around. He's my closest friend."
Eventually, the two made their way inside the aquarium. Bonnie was immediately blown away. In the entrance was a large tank full of tropical fish, sharks, and turtles. Bonnie had never seen these creatures before, so she ran up to the glass to get a better look.
"…Oh my goodness."
The blue light from the tank reflected onto Bonnie's eyes. The water ripples from the top of the tank shone the light onto the brilliant creatures. It was an experience as if she was light on her feet herself. She existed at the same place and time as these animals.
"Never seen anything like it before, huh?"
Bonnie turned around to see her boyfriend slowly coming up to her.
"This aquarium, I mean."
She nodded. She was speechless in the fact that she had never been so close to real animals before in her fake life.
"It's beautiful," she finally whispered.
Clyde smiled at his girlfriend, then looked into the tank. "You ever think about how there's been millions of years that leads us to what we're seeing?"
Bonnie turned to her boyfriend who was as awestruck as a kid, mesmerized by the creatures.
"That the Earth has been around for so long, we're in it together, and eleventy billion years have passed to bring us to this very moment?"
Bonnie continued to stare at the tank with her mouth agape. Clyde slowly reached his hand under to brush under Bonnie's arm, then hold it tightly.
"Life is full of miracles," Clyde blushed as he leaned against his girlfriend.
"Life is a miracle," Bonnie whispered ever so softly.
A few moments between them passed as they stared at the magnificent creatures before them.
"We should go see the rest."
"The rest?!" Bonnie blustered. "I mean… I've never seen an exhibit… so big!"
Clyde laughed as he stood up to her left. "I know. This place truly inspires me. I'm glad to share it with you." Clyde reached out his hand to gesture Bonnie to hold. "Come on, I'll show you."
Bonnie slowly felt a smile come to her face with a giggle. Staring at her boyfriend's hand to his face, she reached for him. Their shared laughter of love pulled them closer together.
Lizzie remained powerless tied up to a chair. She felt a deep anger in her heart. It was angrier than Nigel being late for a date, and it was angrier than being assigned to be a normal human girl instead of an operative.
All the students with their arms and legs chained up sitting in chairs were powerless as the hall monitors held their rulers in their hands to guard the walkways. Some stood, but they had nowhere to go.
Eventually, the black cloaked president came onto the stage to see his crowd. He was far to Lizzie's right, smiling devilishly.
"Ah… it's all perfect…" he approved. Anna slowly approached from stage right to approach Jimmy.
"And where have you been?!" Jimmy hissed.
Clutching her clipboard closer to herself, she responded calmly. "Attending to some last minute details, Master President."
"Anna, how could I have achieved your greatness without you?" he flattered. "Now what are you waiting for, let's get this show on the road!" he then hurriedly barked.
"Yes, Master President."Anna then faced the audience. "EVERYBODY, SIT DOWN!"
The remaining standing students reluctantly sat down.
"Boys and girls, I present to you, your fourth grade president for life!" she announced, backing away to give him some space.
The audience booed at him. Lizzie thought it was music to her ears.
"Now now, no applause," Jimmy mocked. "This is a great day for me! Months of planning have culminated in this afternoon's coronation of my queen… Lizzie DeVine!"
A spotlight beamed light upon the tied up girl, who narrowed her eyebrows at the boy.
"You may have noticed that I have turned totally evil! That was part of the plan. As was the idea to sh—"
A tremendous sneeze blustered from the far end of the audience, interrupting Jimmy. Kids turned their heads to see where it came from.
There he was, cold and wet. A sniffly Nigel Uno clenched his fists at the sight of Jimmy's stage.
"It's a snow day, Jimmy. And I'm gonna spend it," Nigel snorted dripping snot back into his nose. "With my girlfriend!"
Lizzie attempted to shout "Nigie! Help me!" but she was still incomprehensible with the piece of cloth over her mouth.
"I don't know how you got into this school, but you're never gonna get out!" Jimmy yelled. "Hall monitors, attack!"
Four hall monitors raised their rulers at Nigel. He took a fighting stance against them.
"NOW!" came from the crowd. The rest of Sector V released the shackles from their limbs to dive in and attack the hall monitors. The rest of the audience cheered for the Kids Next Door.
"But, how?" Jimmy lamented.
Nigel immediately rushed toward the stage to reach Jimmy and Lizzie.
"Numbuh 1! You might need this!" Numbuh 5 shouted. She tossed one of the hall monitor's rulers to Nigel, who signaled his approval back.
Jimmy ran like a coward away from Nigel as he hopped up onto the stage. Jimmy quickly cranked a lever out of Lizzie's sight to lower the helmet upon her head.
Lizzie trembled and yanked herself around, screaming what she could. Thankfully, her boyfriend took no hesitation to come to her aid.
"LIZZIE! I'm getting you out of here!"
Nigel ripped the cloth from her mouth, but she was speechless to the desperation of her situation. Nigel then attempted to undo the ropes around her arms, prying as hard as he could.
However, a rope from Jimmy came to snag Nigel on the foot to bring him into the air with a hemp.
"NIGIE!" she screamed. It was too late. She watched in horror as the helmet descended onto her head. She attempted to shake off the helmet. It was the best she could do, but it clung to her head like glue.
Immediately, she was granted with illusions in her vision. She felt her infatuation for Nigel rise in her mind. Romantic interest made her heart pound faster. She started to sweat. Her head was becoming hot.
Her vision was obscured by thoughts of romantic interest, but she saw the rest of Sector V rush to her aid after they finished beating the hall monitors.
"WE'RE COMING, LIZZIE!" Numbuh 5 shouted.
Lizzie slurred her words for cries of help to the idea of wanting someone to be there for her.
Sector V surrounded Lizzie to analyze the situation. "The helmet's fusing to her head! Get it off!" Numbuh 5 yelled.
Numbuh 4 jumped atop the chair to grip the helmet to yank it as hard as he could. "It won't come off!"
"Gimmie… Nigie…" was all that could come out of her mouth. Then she started to hallucinate in her hearing. Memories of Nigel were being replaced by Jimmy, speaking to her through the memory.
"Come on, girl, fight it!" Lizzie faintly heard Numbuh 5 beg to her.
"Gimmie Nigie! Gimme Nigie! Gimmie Nigie!"
Her head was burning. Her skin was red hot. She could not tell what she was actually hearing or seeing. Memories of Nigel were fully replaced by Jimmy.
"I love… JIMMY!" echoed throughout the entire theater. Then all was still.
Her head became hotter, a green splash scattering on her skin. The helmet was overrunning, sparking, and frying.
KABOOM!
Lizzie's ears rang. Her memories went back to normal as her infatuation died down. Her eyes were closed, but she felt her limbs free. She plopped down, tired.
The cold snow cloaked Lizzie like a blanket. It felt good on her hot head, so she weakly buried herself down. Wherever she was, she did not know, but the relaxing coolness and white noise put her at ease. She could just fall asleep here.
"Lizzie… Lizzie!"
The tired girl heard the faint voice of Numbuh 5. Her ears ceased ringing, the ambience being replaced by the wind blowing the falling snow.
"Lizzie! Are you OK?" Numbuh 5 shouted. Lizzie felt too weak to respond or move.
"Please be— AAH!" Numbuh 5 gasped. "Oh, that looks nasty." Lizzie felt Numbuh 5 roll her body on her side. She leaned closer to Lizzie. "Say something, girl!"
"Where am I?" Lizzie weakly muttered.
Numbuh 5 used her gloved hand to brush some snow off Lizzie's face.
"Lizzie! LIZZIE!"
"Numbuh 1!" Abby shouted. "Go get Jimmy!"
"I don't care about that! I need to see my Lizzie!"
The fast paced sounds of snow crunching under Nigel's boots with sniffles on each breath came closer and closer to Lizzie until the boy leaped into the air to reach her.
"Is she OK?! Is she breathing?!"
"Yeah but—"
"As your leader, I command you and the rest of our team to go find Jimmy and arrest him and any other of his lackeys under Kids Next Door global command!" Nigel directed to his second-in-command.
"But—"
"NOW!" he roared.
Numbuh 5 promptly obeyed. She ran into the distance with her boots crunching the snow under her.
"Oh Lizzie, darling…" Nigel reached to lift her body to lean against his chest. She sighed deeply. "I know I really shouldn't kiss you when I'm sick, but…" Nigel quickly kissed the top of her head. He held onto her tightly, attempting not to become emotional.
"Hehehe…" Lizzie giggled. "Nigie, that tickles."
Nigel gasped in relief to see that his girlfriend responded. He hugged her tightly. "LIZZIE! YOU'RE OK! The soup worked just like you said!"
After a few moments of getting Lizzie back on her feet, Nigel brought her near the treehouse to get himself a box of tissues and talk to his girlfriend. Behind him, the freed kids were now playing in the snow. The rest of Sector V had called a unit of global officers to arrest Jimmy, Anna, and the rest of his henchmen on charges of major crimes against kids. They had nearly finished bringing them all into the ship to fly to the Arctic Prison.
"You must have been so terrified. You know, Lizzie, I was in a similar position once, before I met you…"
Lizzie blinked slowly. "Someone else tried to use a boyfriend helmet on you?"
"No, no…" he laughed softly, remembering when Lizzie used it on him before. "Anyway, I think it's an appropriate time to tell you something about myself. It's why I became bald."
Lizzie did not have anything to reply with. She was interested to listen to what her boyfriend had to say.
"A few years ago, I was just a normal little boy. I used to have great hair, too. I didn't care about the Kids Next Door and all that, until one day, the Delightful Children from Down the Lane kidnapped me. Me specifically, I don't know why. I was brought into their mansion and dragged kicking into a delightfulization chamber. Father was the one who planned it and all. I trembled at the very sight of him. He looked mad, real mad at me… and I don't know why. Anyway, there was an attempt to delightfulize me, but the chamber's effects to try to get into my brain only removed my hair permanently. That's when Numbuh 5 saved me. She feels guilty for not saving me sooner, but, don't tell her I told you that," he sniffled.
"I was put in the regular, adult-run hospital meant for children. They tried to find out why I turned bald. Nobody there believed me when I told them. Not a soul. I realized I couldn't trust anybody. When I refused to get my vitals tested one morning, they had to hold me down one time…" Nigel felt a shiver run down his spine. "Anyway, Numbuh 5 recruited me and let me pass the entrance exam. Being a Kids Next Door operative made me learn about how cruel this world is, let alone adults. That's why I fight to protect kids. That's why I would go and save you even with the most heinous cold in my life." Nigel reached for another tissue, blowing his nose hard. "Since you're my girlfriend and all, I thought I'd tell you. I mean, I wouldn't have met you back then if I wasn't an operative when Mr. Wink and Mr. Fibb tried to destroy that playground."
"Heh, yeah…" Lizzie scratched behind her head.
"Nigel ol' bean!" was called from the Uno household. "What are you doing outside?!"
Nigel sighed. "Uh oh."
"And Lizzie! You're not wearing your coat! You'll catch a cold like Nigel here!" Mr. Uno said as he exited the house, holding onto the yellow and pink coat that belonged to Lizzie. "Say, did you do something to your hair?"
"Yeah, Dad, we were just… playing," Nigel lied as he gently pushed his dad away to go inside.
"Well, you run along now, young miss!" Mr. Uno waved as Nigel pushed him inside, closing the door.
Lizzie put her coat on, shivering in the cold. She realized that when she was going to get back home, she needed to tell her family about what she just experienced.
Lizzie entered her home with her hat covering her head. Bonnie was there to greet her, making Lizzie feel more guilt.
"How was your snow day, Lizzie? I just had a date with Clyde, and you'll never believe how breathtaking—"
The girl did not respond. She slowly took off her mittens. She was hoping Bonnie would not bother her anymore.
"Lizzie? Is something wrong?"
Lizzie turned around and promptly took off her hat, facing her older sister.
"LIZZIE!" Bonnie screamed upon seeing her. Lizzie's glasses were broken, her shirt was torn, and the top of her head was burned completely down the middle.
Bonnie placed her hands on Lizzie's shoulders. She continued to scan her to find more injuries present. "Oh my gosh, are you OK? What happened? Did someone do this to you?"
Lizzie let tears build up in her eyes as she started to cry. She hugged Bonnie tightly.
"You were right about the boy thing! I should have listened to you! You were right…"
As Lizzie continued to cry into Bonnie's dress, the older sister gently stroked the back of her little sister. "Oh, Lizzie…"
A rushed sound of Mrs. DeVine heading down the stairs made Bonnie lift her head up.
"I heard screaming. What happened?!" Mrs. DeVine yelled. As she entered the front room, she saw her two daughters embracing each other. However, the sight of Lizzie's injuries erupted a shriek from Mrs. DeVine that her daughters have never heard before.
"LIZZIE, BABY!" she picked up her youngest daughter to swing her in her arms. "I want whoever did this with his head on a platter after I hunt him down and—!"
Lizzie and Bonnie stared shocked at their mother. She gently put the weeping Lizzie down.
"Lizzie, baby, tell me who did this so I can take responsible action."
"Mom, I don't think whoever did this deserves to be killed of all thi—"
"This isn't about you, Bonnie!" she hissed at her oldest. She focused her full attention on Lizzie instead. "My poor, sweet baby who's never done anything to deserve this…" Mrs. DeVine proceeded to kiss her daughter many times over.
"Bonnie, don't just stand there! Go get the medical kit!"
"Right!" Bonnie realized. She rushed out of the front room.
"Those Kids Next Door didn't do this, did they?"
"No, Mom!" Lizzie sniffled through tears. "It was that Jimmy kid from school…"
"OK, baby… why don't we sit down and we can talk about it more before I give him and his parents a piece of my mind?"
Lizzie nodded. Mrs. DeVine held her baby girl's hand to head to the warm living room.
Numbuh 74.239 quietly stalked Numbuh Infinity down the empty hallway of the Dark-Side-Of-The-Moonbase. Near the room the experiment was near, a long metal hallway distanced between the area and Infinity's office. 74.239 had a feeling he was headed there.
The nerd's tiptoeing on the side of the wall made no noise to be heard by the operative he was stalking. As he came closer, he peeked out to the right of the end of the hallway into the path that turned right. He noticed that from behind, Numbuh Infinity appeared to be licking the back of his hands as if he had a foul taste in his mouth. He sighed, finally entering the door that was his office.
74.239 made a silent rush for it as he sneaked up against the wall. He pressed his back against the left of the door. He pulled out a device from his pocket, known as a M.O.N.O.S.K.O.P.E. to hopefully spy on the inside. It was a tiny eyeglass that could see through walls.
"Numbuh Aleph Zero, I would like to speak with you," Numbuh Infinity requested from inside his office.
Above the boy, a giant glowing beam of light emerged from the ceiling. "Yes, Numbuh Infinity?"
74.239 felt his heart sink from the echoing voice of his supreme leader. He remained calm as to not be noticed.
"That taste is back."
"I see. Continue with our deal."
74.239 lowered himself down.
"Numbuh Aleph Zero," Infinity continued. He lowered to his head as a gesture of respect. "I understand Nigel Uno is our operative of interest. I understand that Chester's Happy Headband must be tested to its upmost capacity to use on Nigel Uno. I understand Numbuh 9L is to be used as the device's validator. Do I make myself clear, Numbuh Aleph Zero?"
The soopreme leader hesitated. Infinity responded by lowering his head more.
"Your factoids suggest you wish to propose a request upon me. Spit it out."
Infinity took a deep breath, raising his head up high.
"Numbuh 9L is mentally exhausted from such experiments. I suggest we dial down the—"
In a split second, a bolt of silent lightning came to strike down Infinity from Aleph Zero's light.
From the outside, 74.239 jumped from what he just witnessed.
"Did you choose your codename to be 'Numbuh Infinity' because you said, and I quote: 'It takes infinite patience to be a Galactic Kids Next Door operative'?"
The boy, his body paralyzed, responded weakly. "…Yes."
From the bright light, Aleph Zero reached his hand down from it. Looking on, 74.239 could see the hand, but his eyes could not understand it. It was shaped like a human hand, but it was every color at once. It was every texture at once. It was so hard to look at, that 74.239 squinted in its presence.
The hand reached for Infinity's chin to allow his paralyzed head to face the bright light of the leader.
"When venatorra like you are born, they burst out of their mother's abdomen and eat her to survive. That's what you taste, Numbuh Infinity. I can help you die it down, but it'll be permanent in your mouth, no matter what disguise you posses. You can eat as much ice cream and candy as you wish, but it will never go away."
Aleph Zero's incomprehensible limb reached back up into the light.
"But that's why I like you, Numbuh Infinity. Your species has the perfect cycle of life. The birth of the child is the death of the parent. That is how all should be. This is why Earth and Waksei disgust me. These mammals… they rely on their parents. It is repulsive."
Infinity's legs twitched as he lied still. He licked his lips, but the taste would not go away.
74.239 believed he saw too much. He put the M.O.N.O.S.K.O.P.E. away in his pocket. He tiptoed slightly away from the door, then made a dash for it.