Author Notes - Couldn't write a story like this without including Mia, could I? A somewhat longer chapter than usual, to make up for the fact that it's sandwiched between two shorter ones.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - THE BOND BETWEEN SISTERS

Mia glanced at the clock on her phone. The bus to take her out of the city should've been there five minutes ago, but she was used to buses being late in Big Bubble City. She wasn't alone at the bus stop. There were several people waiting for their ride. But Mia only knew one person.

'Stupid bus driver…' Molly muttered. 'They have ONE job and they can't even do that!'

Mia tried to ignore her abrasive attitude, like she had been doing for a couple years now. But it had been getting harder and harder every day. The only relief was knowing that she wouldn't have to worry about that for a long while.

'Hurry up!' Molly yelled. 'My little sister needs a bus trip to her new home and she needs it NOW!'

'Molly, it's okay,' Mia said, ignoring the stares coming their way. 'I can wait. Besides, it's not like I'm looking forward to sitting on a bus for an hour.'

'Yeah, but the sooner you set off, the sooner you'll be home!'

Mia managed to give her a small but real smile. When she had first told Molly that she was moving out, she had been expecting her big sister to react negatively. Maybe shout about it. But no. Molly had been supportive of the move since day one. And not even in a 'you will finally be out of my hair' sort of way, either.

That was a genuine smile on Molly's face. Mia had seen so many fake smiles that she could easily tell the difference. She couldn't explain it, but there was a distinct difference that only she could detect.

Fortunately, Molly didn't have to complain for much longer. The bus showed up just a little late, and the bus driver wasted no time in opening the doors.

'All aboard!' She said, as though she was a train conductor.

Mia picked up her backpack (the bulk of her belongings were already waiting for her at her new home), and took a deep breath. It wasn't like she was dependent on her sister or anything, but this would be the first time in a while that they were separated by this much.

'Well,' Molly said. 'It's time for you to head off.'

Mia was about to embark on the bus alongside everyone else, but she stopped herself. She saw something on her sister's cheek. Something that glistened in the sunlight.

'Molly, are you crying?' She asked.

'O-Of course not!' Molly said.

Mia chuckled. 'I'll miss you too, Sis.'

The Guppies crowded around Deema's computer. Its screen was a lot larger than any of them were expecting. Gil sat in front of the keyboard, adding Mia's contact details into Deema's computer so they could call her up that way.

'Remember guys,' He said. 'Mia has her own life. There's a chance she won't call.'

'She might,' Zooli said. 'When she sees that she's getting a call from Deema's computer. She won't recognise the rest of us but she'll definitely recognise a name like that.'

'I can't wait to meet her!' Brianna said. 'I really don't know Mia at all. Probably because she was just a little baby when the band was around.'

Gil started the call, and the Guppies waited. Truthfully, they didn't really expect much to come of this. So imagine their surprise when Mia picked up the 'phone' almost straight away. Like Zooli said, the allure of receiving a phone call from a famous celebrity was too cool to ignore.

'Okay, hi Ms Swimmer!' She said, her voice brimming with excitement. 'I don't know how you got my number, but- OH MY GOD!'

Mia's jaw dropped. Getting a call from a big-name actress was one thing, but seeing about seven Guppies staring back at her was another thing entirely. And Brianna's jaw dropped too. Pictures of Mia were far and few between on the website, perhaps because Molly wasn't comfortable with sharing too many photos of her. So Brianna barely had a clue what Mia even looked like. For the first time in her life, she was getting a good look at her (former) hero's little sister.

Mia looked so much like Molly. Same shade of pink hair, and same brown eyes. But they were far from identical. Mia's hair was much shorter, barely even reaching her shoulders, and her tail was pink instead of blue. Not identical, but so obviously related that it wasn't even funny.

'Uh, hi, Gil!' Mia said, waving. 'I see you, uh, brought a lot of friends with you. Um, since when were you on 'using her computer' levels with Ms Swimmer?'

'Long story, Mia,' Gil said. 'Ya see…'

And Gil explained the whole thing. From the band, to his encounter with Brianna and her little entourage. The more he explained, the more in awe Mia became. Her jaw was dropping to levels that didn't even look possible.

'Oh man, that sounds awesome!' She said, once Gil was finished. 'I wish I wasn't so far away, cos I'd so be joining you guys right now if I could! I-!'

The volume of her voice rose higher and higher until she suddenly stopped talking and covered her mouth. She gave the Guppies a quick 'one minute' gesture and left the room. It was only about a minute later when she returned, as per her 'word'.

'Sorry about that,' She said. 'I just got the damn kid to sleep and I don't want to wake him up.'

Goby's eyes widened. 'Wait, kid? You have a kid?'

Mia chuckled. 'Oh, sorry for the confusion, but no. He's not mine. I'm just babysitting for someone down the street. So forgive me if I have the volume on my computer a little quieter than usual. But enough of that. I can't believe you guys are all back together again! Good job, Brianna!'

Brianna blushed and laughed. Mia may not have been Molly or a 'replacement', but getting complimented by her instead felt like the next best thing. But Mia stopped smiling.

'Oh,' She said. 'But my sister refused to come back, didn't she?'

Gil nodded. 'Yep. Told us we were just 'nobodies' and that we need to grow up.'

'I still can't believe it!' Oona said. 'We see her for the first time in, like, ten freaking years, and that's how that jerk decides to treat us?!' She paused. 'No offence, Mia, but your sister is a dick.'

Nonny nudged her with his elbow to get her to stop. By this point, no one was surprised by the language that Oona was using.

'You're right…' Mia said with a sigh. 'My sister is a dick. She's nice enough to her family but everyone else just isn't important enough for her. I'm sorry you had to deal with her stupid attitude.'

'Well, we're not dealing with that anymore,' Deema said. 'We tried, she said no, and now she's out of the team. Frankly, I feel kinda bad for her. She's missing out big time. The Bubble Guppies are coming back together, and that's going to make waves across the ocean. I mean, think about it. The beloved band from everyone's childhoods has finally reunited, and there's a super famous - and rather talented - actress in the middle of it! Molly will be missing out on a lot of clout.'

'I never thought she'd do something like this. I always thought for sure that if Molly had the chance to go back to the band, she would. Even if she didn't care for her old friends anymore, she'd at least like the attention it would give her! But I guess she considers you guys that unimportant.'

'Yeah…' Brianna said. 'Kinda sucks, huh?'

That look of irritation and disgust on Molly's face was still fresh in her mind. There hadn't been a single time when she imagined that her hero would ever react to her like that. Even learning that the band was formed decades ago and that Molly wasn't actually the young child that Brianna had thought she still was, she had imagined that Molly would be nice to her. Or at least ambivalent.

But no.

'Molly was always my favourite…' She said.

'Aw man,' Mia said. 'That hurts. A lot of people really liked Molly back in the day, I hear. Back when she was still a kid and really nice. I kinda wish I could tell you that something really horrible happened to her, like that her parents died or some guy was terrible to her. At least something that...' She paused, for a considerable amount of time. 'Something that had happened before her change in attitude. Not that I WANT something like that to happen to my sister! Of course not! I'm happy to say that she's had a pretty good life despite the... occasional downs. But, well…'

'Part of you wishes there was something to justify, or at least explain, her new attitude,' Nonny said. 'A tragic event of some kind could certainly accomplish something like that. But nothing of the sort happened. And while you're happy that your sister has had a good life, you will always wish there was a reason for her behaviour.'

Mia let out a humourless laugh. 'Yeah, something like that. You really are as smart as they said you were. Instead, I gotta deal with my sis being a jerk just because the fame got to her. It's why I'm kinda happy that I never became super famous. I've seen what it could do to people.'

Deema, as the one celebrity in the room, cleared her throat so loudly that you'd think she had a whole sandwich caught in there.

'You still have an ego, Ms Swimmer,' Mia said. 'And I know this because if you didn't, you wouldn't feel the need to draw attention to yourself after I was just ragging on famous people.'

Deema was not expecting for Mia to call her out like this, and it made her blush. She smiled an embarrassed smile and backed away a little.

'And this is why I'm happy with being a mundane geologist,' Goby said. 'Fame is terrifying.'

'If it turns me into a complete freaking jerk,' Oona said. 'Then I want nothing to do with it.'

'Uh, no offence, guys,' Brianna said. 'But you guys are kinda celebrities. Child stars, anyway. A lotta people know your names. You just had a better break than most child stars cos your everyday lives were pretty normal.'

The room went silent again as the other Guppies realised that she was right. After all, they were only reunited because of a fan. Because they were famous to begin with.

'Yeah,' Mia said. 'She's right. That's why Mom and Dad kept me out of the spotlight and were very careful about treating Molly like a normal child. They didn't want to recreate Judy Garsand or the Ocean Twins.'

'And we still didn't let the fame get to our heads!' Deema said.

Gil scoffed. 'Rich coming from you, Drama Queen.'

'Okay, so I'll admit, I'm also someone banking on her success as a Bubble Guppy. Someone of my skill would probably get by anyway, but-'

'Proving my point.'

'BUT, being in the Bubble Guppies is responsible for a lot of that. So Molly and I are really similar, I guess. But reminder, only one of us has the reputation of being nice to her fans!'

'Stop!' Brianna shouted.

It had been a knee-jerk reaction, one that Brianna came to regret when everyone turned to her in surprise. But the regret didn't last long. She took a deep breath and swam a couple feet off the floor so she could be at eye-level with the adults.

'I'm sorry,' She said. 'But that sounded like an argument was about to start. The last thing we need is for you guys to start fighting and break up again. We don't need that. I don't want that.'

'Woah-ho!' Deema said. 'That wasn't a fight. That was a little spat between friends. Gil wasn't actually getting mad with me.' She turned to Gil. '... Were you?'

'Nah, not really,' Gil said. 'Just calling you out on your ego, that's all. See, unlike Molly, I'm not going to let one little thing like that cause this entire group to suddenly split apart.'

'Yeah,' Oona said. 'After all this time, we're not splitting up again like that. You think I can be fricked to go through all this nonsense only to decide that, welp, don't want to be here anymore!'

Brianna breathed a heavy sigh of relief. To say that her encounter with Molly had left her on edge would be an understatement. It had left her just a little terrified that her newfound friends would break up again.

'Hey, I've got a cool idea!' Mia said. 'Why don't you all drop by my place? It's kind of out of the way, but I doubt that there's much else left for you in Big Bubble City anyway.'

'Seems a bit out of the way,' Gil said.

'No,' Zooli said. 'I think it's a good idea. Seriously. We found you and Deema, and there's nothing else for us here. We might as well.'

'I concur,' Nonny said. 'Besides, I am not a big fan of being in the middle of a bustling city. Wherever Mia lives must be quieter than this.'

Mia nodded. 'Yeah, I live in a real quiet place. In this little town called Bubbletucky.'

To some of our Guppies, that name didn't really mean much. Any relevance that name had to their lives was long forgotten. But the others knew that name very well. Brianna, Oona, Nonny, and Zooli all gasped at the same time.

'Bubbletucky?!' They cried at once.

Gil flinched. 'A-Alright. That name means something to you guys, I guess.'

'You bet your ass, it does!' Oona said, continuing before Nonny could tell her to tone down her language. 'That's where these guys live. And, it's where ALL of us used to live while we were still the Bubble Guppies!'

'... Hold on,' Goby said. 'What.'

'She's right!' Brianna said. 'Bubbletucky is often called 'the Birthplace of the Bubble Guppies' for a good reason! Well, at least it was. People don't seem to call it that much anymore. But they used to call it that all the time!'

'Indeed,' Nonny said. 'In fact, our band was responsible for more people moving to the town. It is noticeably bigger than it used to be before our band was formed. We put Bubbletucky on the map, as it were.'

'So,' Zooli said, standing up. 'I know it's short notice, but what do you say to heading back to Bubbletucky tomorrow morning? We found what we wanted to find in the city, and I think we're all ready to return home. Come on, let's see some hands in the middle!'

Zooli held her hand out in front of her, inviting the rest of the group to put their hands on top. Oona was the first to take the invitation, followed soon by Nonny and Goby. Deema took a good look around her suite before putting her hand down too. Even Mia, through the screen, put her hand out as if joining in for real. Brianna joined in with so much gusto that she all but smacked her hand against Deema's.

The only Guppy who wasn't joining in was Gil.

'Come on, Gil!' Goby said. 'You know you wanna!'

'It isn't that I don't want to go with you,' Gil said. 'I really do. You may be a bunch of weirdos who are strangely obsessed with this 'band' thing, but I like being with you. I want to go back to those good old days too. But - and I'm not sure if you remember this - I have a job here. A serious one at that. My firefighting crew is strong, but I'm not going to leave this city without its fire chief.'

'... Oh.'

The others didn't want to admit it, but he had made a very good point. Most of the Guppies had jobs that could be paused for a week or two because they worked independently to some extent. Or, in Oona's case, it was the school holidays and she didn't have to worry about being a teacher. As for Gil…

'Hold on,' Zooli said. 'You seem really dedicated to this job. How much holiday time do you have stacked up?'

Gil remained silent. He could only maintain eye contact for a little bit before he ended up seeming quite interested in a pillow instead.

'Answer the question, Gilly!' Mia said. 'Come on. Tell us.'

'... A few days,' Gil answered.

Deema cocked an eyebrow. 'Only a few days?'

'Okay, fine! I've had several weeks of vacation time building up! Maybe even a couple of months. But I can't take a holiday because my firefighting team needs me!'

'Don't think very highly of your team there,' Oona said. 'Do ya?'

Gil flashed her an offended look. 'Excuse me? My team is amazing. Some of the best there is. I've never met a team so brave and heroic before!'

'Which means they'll probably do just fine on their own for a week or two.'

Gil opened his mouth to reply, but found himself a little short. It's not like he had been looking for a way out of this, but he assumed that he wouldn't be able to join. He hadn't quite been expecting the other Guppies to give him a way out.

'Okay, here's the deal,' He said. 'I'll talk to my crew after this conversation is over. If they can arrange something while I'm gone, I'll do it. But if they can't, I'm staying here. Is that a deal?'

'Sounds fine to me!' Zooli said. 'But I think your crew will be fine.'

'Well, I think that just about settles it!' Mia said. 'I'll send Gilly the address, and hopefully I'll see you all tomorrow!'

'Zooli...'

Zooli was trying to get to sleep, but Oona was whispering worry into her ear. And had been doing so for the past five minutes. Seeing as this wasn't going to end unless she cooperated, Zooli groaned.

'What?' She asked.

'I was thinking about... something while we were talking to Mia,' Oona replied. 'Brianna's still asleep, right?'

The two ladies sat up a little so they could get a better look at the small, portable bed on the floor next to them. Brianna was so deep in sleep that she was drooling on her pillow just slightly.

'Yep,' Zooli said. 'Definitely. What's that thing you were thinking about?'

'Well,' Oona said. 'Mia was talking about how she kinda wishes that something bad happened to her sister to make her act like that. Obviously she's happy that nothing bad actually happened. She just wished there was a justified reason for Molly being such a dick.'

'Yeah, point being?'

Oona sighed. 'But something did happen to her. To all of us.'

'... Are you talking about-?'

'Uh-huh.'

Even though neither lady mentioned what they were talking about or even any names, somehow, they both knew exactly what the conversation was about.

'It doesn't matter, really,' Zooli said. 'According to Gil and Deema, Molly's been a jerk before... that happened. So it wasn't like it had anything to do with it.'

'Do you think Brianna knows about that?' Oona asked.

Zooli took another glance at Brianna. The little girl was smiling in her sleep.

'I dunno, maybe,' She replied. 'But I really don't want to think about it. It seems like we've all agreed not to mention it. So let's continue that streak for as long as we can.'

Author Notes - I won't get into detail about it due to spoiler reasons, but I could tell while proofreading this chapter that I hadn't made up my mind on a rather big decision yet. So I went through and fixed things up a little bit to fit better with what I ended up going with. You might be able to tell what it was already, but I won't be telling you myself until we get to the chapter where it's revealed.

Like how 'Steve Irfin' was referencing a real celebrity, so are 'Judy Garsand' and the 'Ocean Twins'. Respectively, Judy Garland and the Olsen Twins. They are stand-out example of what being a 'child star' can do to a person.