"50 points!" Carrie exclaimed as she watched the ball she tossed fall down the hole with the label '50' around its casing.

"Alright, that was pretty good," Arturo laughed. "But now it's my turn."

"Careful," she warned him with a smirk. "If you mess up our score I might not let you take me out again."

Arturo snorted. "Well, we'll have to see about that. I always beat the guys at Skee-Ball."

As he reached down and grabbed one of the small white plastic balls, he set his gaze on the 100 point goal.

He wasn't lying when he said he was the best at the game amongst his friends, but it had been a minute since he'd stepped into an arcade to practice his skills. But after the movie wrapped up, he saw the arcade area on their way out and was overcome with a sense of nostalgia and a desire to prolong the date for as long as possible.

"Sure, it looks fun," Carrie said when he pointed it out to her. "I brought some cash just in case anyway. Ooh, especially if we could win that," she pointed at a bright green teddy bear hanging up on the side.

"5,000 tickets?!" Arturo exclaimed when he saw the listed price. "Man, I bet something like that would cost five bucks at Malph's."

"The unreasonable prices is what makes it special though," Carrie joked. "You know, in a certain light he even looks like you. Green, cuddly. Sorta cute from the right angle."

"Oh, so it's a 'he' now?" Arturo snorted, looking down at his feet to hide the blush forming on his cheeks from being called 'cute.'

"It could be," she said. "If we're able to bring him home. Our adoptive son."

And with that, Arturo knew he had to get that bear, one way or another.

"Come on, come on," he whispered to himself. After having spent the last three hours there, they were just behind the amount they needed.

After internally praying to whatever gods might be listening, he tossed the ball, and watched as it headed towards the hundred point hole…

…And bounced off to the side.

"Maldito," he cursed to himself. He turned to Carrie with an apologetic look. "You don't have any more quarters left, do you?"

"No, that's all I brought," she said. "I mean, it's okay, we can get something else instead, right? We still got 4900 tickets," she pulled the tickets they earned out of her purse, showing off the huge amount they amassed.

"Yeah, I guess," Arturo said.

As they started walking towards the counter, he couldn't help but notice that despite her words, Carrie did look disappointed, which was the last thing he wanted her to be feeling before they left.

"Actually, I have an idea."

She stopped in front of him, giving him a questioning look. "What?"

"Go up to that guy at the counter and distract him," he whispered in her ear.

"Why?"

He waggled his eyebrows and twitched his fingers. "So I can get us the Gangreen Special Discount."

"Arturo!"

"Come on! We basically earned it anyway!" Arturo said. "And those things are overpriced as hell."

She hesitated for a moment before sighing in defeat.

"Okay, but you better be quick. I don't really feel like getting arrested tonight."

"Don't worry man, I'm an expert," he winked.

She rolled her eyes and made her way over towards the cashier, putting on a friendly smile.

"Hey… Thomas," she addressed him after taking a quick glance at his name badge. "I was wondering if I could ask for your help with something."

Instantly, the young cashier perked up, turning all of his attention on the girl in front of him. He looked just a couple years younger than Arturo himself, most likely just finishing high school or just starting college. He wore a puke green polo shirt with khakis, thick glasses, and had short, greasy black hair.

"What do you need, ma'am?" he asked.

"Well, I was wearing this little charm bracelet my grandma got me for my birthday last year, and I seemed to have lost it," she lifted up her hand, showing her bare wrist.

"I'm sorry to hear that. As far as I know, I haven't seen anyone turn anything like that into the lost and found," he picked up the radio hanging from his waistband. "I could page my manager and ask if he's seen anything-"

"Thanks, but I'm kind of in a rush," she said. "My… cousin and I were about to head to a dinner party after this, and I really need to find it soon."

He looked back towards Arturo, and adjusted his glasses with a confused expression. "That's your cousin?"

"Well, second cousin. Twice removed," she amended. "Do you think you can help me find it?"

The cashier hesitated. "I would, but I'm really not supposed to leave the counter when I'm working…"

"I promise I won't keep you long," she brushed her hair behind her ear and leaned on the counter, flashing her big brown eyes. "Please? Just for a minute?"

The young man's face reddened. "W-Well, I guess I could spare a minute."

As she and the worker walked off toward some random direction Carrie was leading him to, she gave Arturo a nod. Not wasting any time, he immediately hopped the counter and set his sights on the green bear.

As he stood up on his tip toes and made a grab for it, he realized with frustration that it was just barely outside of his reach. Cursing to himself, he quickly looked around to see if there was anything he could stand on to get to it. He quickly set his sights on a box lying on the ground, and went to go get it.

"Damn it," he grunted as he struggled to push it to the place he needed. "What the hell is in this thing, bricks?"

Finally, after spending nearly a minute getting it right into place, he jumped on top. As he reached out and grabbed the bear, he heard the cashier's voice behind him.

"I'm really sorry we couldn't find your bracelet, ma'am," he said. "But if you wanted to give me your number, I could call you if I find it later. Hey, by the way, do you have a boyfriend-"

Arturo whipped his head back, and before he could move, he saw both the cashier and Carrie looking back at him.

"Hey!" the cashier yelled. "Hey, you can't be back there!"

"Shit!" he cursed again. Without a second thought, he jumped the counter again and took off towards the door with his prize. He looked back for a moment, and smiled as he saw Carrie was right behind him.

"Get back here!" the cashier cried. "Man, Dave is gonna be pissed…"

As soon as the pair were outside, Arturo looked back once again to make sure they weren't being followed, and took a sigh of relief.

"I think we're good," he said, stopping in the parking lot to catch his breath.

"Oh my god," Carrie said between gasps of air. She raised a hand to her chest, and gave him a smile. "I can't believe you talked me into doing that."

"Hey, cousins gotta stick together, right?"

"Oh, shut up," she giggled, playfully smacking him on the arm.

"Besides, we had to get Arturo jr. somehow," Arturo said, holding up the bear.

Carrie raised her eyebrows. "Arturo jr?"

"Well, I guess he'd be Arturo the Third since I'm a junior." His smile faltered for a moment as his thoughts briefly dwelled on his papi. He shook his head. "But if you want to name him something else-"

"No, I like it," Carrie smiled. She reached out her hand and petted the top of the bear's head. Her eyes moved from the stuffed animal to Arturo for a moment before falling back onto the bear.

"So, what's the custody arrangement here? Are we going fifty-fifty, or are we playing rock paper scissors for it?"

"Nah, you can have him, I got him for you anyway," Arturo said, handing her the bear. "Then again, maybe fifty-fifty ain't such a bad idea if it means I'll get to see you again."

"Hey now, you don't have to hold our adoptive son over my head just to get a second date," she said with a teasing smile. "All you have to do is ask."

As Carrie's chocolate brown eyes stared into his, Arturo felt his heart race.

"Carrie, can I take you out again sometime?"

In response, she moved closer and rested her warm, soft hand on his cheek before leaning in and pressing her lips against his. Arturo immediately leaned into the kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulled her close to his body. His head swimmed with the scent of her perfume, smelling like freshly baked cookies straight from the oven.

However, their moment was soon interrupted by Carrie's ringtone going off.

"Sorry," she said as she pulled away, leaving Arturo with nothing but the evening chill.

"Yes?" she answered, a slight edge to her tone. "Arturo? Yeah, he's here with me. Who is this?"

After a few moments, Arturo gave her a questioning look as she shrugged and handed him the phone. "It's for you," she said.

Curiously, Arturo took the phone, holding it up to his ear.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Arturo, I swear to god," Ace's voice hissed on the other line. "If ya don't get your ass back here right this second, I'll call the cops and have ya thrown in the slammer so fast your head will spin."

"Ace?" Arturo asked. "What's going on? How did you get Carrie's number?"

"I found it in ya room. Among other things."

"You went through my stuff?!"

"Just get back here. Now." Ace hissed. He slammed the phone back on the receiver, and the other line went dead.

"What was that all about?" Carrie asked.

"Beats me. But whatever it is, Ace is pissed about something," Arturo said, handing her back her phone and giving her an apologetic look. "I guess I better get back before he really gets mad."

Carrie shook her head. "I don't know why you stay with him," she said. "You're a grown man, you know. He's not your dad."

"I know, but…" Arturo trailed off. "It's complicated, all right?"

In response, Carrie just shrugged, looking down at her shoes.

"Hey," Arturo said, reaching out for her hand. "I'm sorry you got caught in the middle of this. I was hoping to leave our date on a better note. I'll call you later, okay?"

"Okay," she said reluctantly.

Sensing that the romantic tension was gone, Arturo pulled her into a hug, absorbing all of the warmth he could before his journey home.

As Blossom laid back on the chaise lounge sofa in Professor Marlow's study, she once again looked back at him in question.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" she asked. "I mean, I've never tried hypnosis, but it seems mostly like a bunch of made up hocus pocus. No offense."

Professor Marlow raised an eyebrow and gave her a wry grin. "I know it sounds strange, but you'd be surprised at how much of our actions, even our physical health is due to our subconscious minds. You've heard of people 'worrying themselves sick,' correct? Or of hypochondriacs who become so convinced they have a certain illness that they actually start displaying physical symptoms?"

Blossom rubbed her arm. "Well yeah, but-"

"Like I said, I can't promise you anything. Some take to the process better than others. But if you truly want to try and get your powers back…"

"I do," Blossom said firmly. And she meant it. The sooner she and Bubbles got their powers back, the sooner they could help get rid of the Gangreen Gang once and for all, and restore Townsville to how it's supposed to be. Townsville would stop seeing them as helpless little girls, free to be discarded, and once again see them as the heroes they were.

Which meant she and Bubbles could finally go home and everything would be as it should.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Blossom said. "I'm ready."

"Okay," Professor Marlow scooted back in his chair. "We'll start off slow. Relax; breathe in, breathe out. Close your eyes."

Blossom did as she was told. She inhaled, she exhaled. She inhaled, she exhaled. Still, she couldn't completely rid herself of the tension she felt.

Professor Marlow must've noticed, because the next thing he said was, "Blossom, it's okay. You don't have to be nervous."

"Sorry," she sighed, opening her eyes. "I guess I'm just- I don't want you to…"

"Make you get up and start doing the Chicken Dance?" he asked, amused.

Blossom felt her face heat up. "Something like that."

"Well Blossom dear, you don't have to worry about that; I promise you'll be in control of yourself for the entire session. If you do get up and start doing the Chicken Dance, it will be entirely of your own volition."

Blossom let out a snort. She was starting to feel a little better about the whole ordeal.

"Now, shall we start again, or do you need more time?"

Blossom took in a deep breath. "I'm good."

"Okay, we'll start from the beginning. Close your eyes and take a deep breath in and out. In and out. Clear your mind of everything in the present, and instead, imagine a blank wall."

Blossom closed her eyes. She imagined being in her old room, staring at the wall opposite of her bed, as she sometimes did during nights when she couldn't sleep. With it, she started to picture her room in its entirety; the pink, blue, and green color scheme, the heart-shaped vanity she and Bubbles shared. She pictured the TV that the Professor had gotten them a few years ago, her books, Bubbles' stuffed animals, Buttercup's sports equipment. She saw her closet and the small pile of toys they still hadn't gotten rid of yet from their childhood.

"Now," Professor Marlow's voice cut in. "Imagine along that wall, there's a clock. But instead of the arms going forward, they're moving backward. First by a minute," he snapped his fingers. "Than an hour." Snap. "Then a day, a week, a year." Snap, snap, snap. "Two years, three years, four years." Snap, snap, snap. "All the way back as far as you can remember."

Blossom thoughts raced back throughout her childhood; playing with her sisters and her friends, fighting crime all over Townsville, her first birthday party, discovering her special ice powers that were hers and hers alone for the first time…

Finally, she stopped at that very first moment, the moment she stood on the Professor's laboratory table with her sisters, staring back at their creator who looked at them with absolute shock. It was a strange first memory, and one unique to them; one moment she didn't exist, and the next she was a fully formed five year old with the ability to talk, walk, fly, and speak in full sentences.

"What day is it, Blossom?" Professor Marlow's voice asked in the background.

"Me and my sisters' creation day," Blossom said, her eyes still closed.

"What happened on that day?"

"The Professor told me he was going to name me Blossom because I was direct and opened up easily."

"I see," Professor Marlow said. "How did that make you feel?"

"Good," Blossom said. "It made me feel good. I like my name."

"And why did it make you feel good?"

"Because…" Blossom hesitated. Well, why wouldn't it?

"Don't overthink it, Blossom. Just tell me the first thing that comes to your mind."

"Because… because it made me feel like I was reliable, a leader," she said. "Because it made him happy."

"The Professor?"

"Yes."

"What happened next?"

Blossom thought back to later that day. She smiled. "The Professor went out and bought us a bunch of gifts for our birthday. I didn't even know what a birthday was, but I got an entire encyclopedia set and spent the rest of the day reading them, soaking in as much information about the world as I could. The book on Ancient China was my favorite."

"You were born with the ability to know how to read?" he asked, surprised. "That's incredible."

"All of us were, but I was the best at it," she said, feeling not a small amount of pride.

"Well, that sounds like a lovely memory Blossom," Professor Marlow said. "Now, I'm going to snap my fingers again and when I do, I want you to open your eyes and bring yourself back to the modern day. You are no longer a freshly born child, but a young lady of twelve," he snapped his fingers. Blossom opened her eyes and instead of being in her old, brightly lit living room with her sisters, she was lying across from Professor Marlow, in his dark wood office.

"Hello Blossom," Professor Marlow smiled. "How do you feel?"

Blossom blinked. "Good, I guess," she said. "Maybe a little sleepy."

Professor Marlow grinned. "Yes, that can be a side effect sometimes," he said. "Why don't you try to use your powers, something small. See if you can float up from that couch."

"Okay," Blossom said skeptically. She closed her eyes once again and tried to imagine herself floating in mid air as she used to. She imagined the wind racing through her hair and biting into her skin when she was going particularly fast, or when she wasn't, the feeling of the world around her holding her like a cradle.

And yet when she opened her eyes again, she saw that gravity was still firmly holding her in place.

"That's perfectly alright," Professor Marlow said, seeing her disappointed expression. "To be honest, I didn't think it would work the first time anyway, but I thought it would be worth a try. Usually we have to go a bit deeper to make any real progress, but I wanted to ease you into your first session. Especially with how nervous you seemed."

"I wasn't that nervous," Blossom said defensively.

"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow.

"I wasn't."

"Well, alright," Professor Marlow acquiesced. "In that case, we can try again tomorrow if you'd like."

"Okay," Blossom agreed. She sighed. "I'm sorry, this is just… it's really important to me to get my powers back and I need to know if there's something to all of this."

"Of course," he smiled his wide smile at her. "Whatever you need."

When Arturo stepped into the former mayor's mansion, he was greeted with three different faces; Ace, who was fuming, Sedusa with her arms crossed standing by his side, and lastly, Billy, who was standing off in the corner, sniffling.

"What happened? Arturo asked.

"What happened?!" Ace hissed. "As if you don't know."

"I don't," Arturo said. "What, am I not allowed to go on dates or something now?"

"Not if it means stealin' my cash!" Ace lifted his hand up, showing the money in his hand. "I can't believe you pulled this shit after ya stunt with the ten grand!"

"What?!" Arturo exclaimed. "I didn't steal nothing, man. We snuck into the movies and played some arcade games with some extra cash she had."

Sedusa snorted. "You think any of us believe that?"

Arturo narrowed his eyes. "Nobody asked you."

"I found this in ya room," Ace said. "Eighty bucks."

"It's not mine!" Arturo insisted. "I swear, I haven't taken anything!"

"How else did it get there then, eh?" Ace prodded. "Did the tooth fairy leave it?"

"Look man, I'm telling you I didn't steal!" he exclaimed.

"Stop lying, Arturo. Billy already told us everything," Sedusa cut in. She looked over toward the teary-eyed giant. "Didn't you, Billy?"

Arturo turned his gaze toward his friend with wide eyes.

The green giant shook his head. "Billy don't like to lie-"

"We know, Billy," Sedusa cut in with a sickly sweet tone. If Arturo didn't know any better, he would've almost called it motherly. "Which means you were very brave to tell us the truth."

"Billy!" Arturo yelled. "You know I didn't do shit, man!"

"Shut up! I'm sick of this!" Ace said. "I can't keep ya around if I'm constantly gonna have to worry about ya goin' behind my back."

"Ace, come on," Arturo said pleadingly. He felt himself start to panic as Ace looked back at him as if he didn't recognize him. "You know I didn't do it. You know. I'm your brother, I've been by your side since day one."

For a moment, Ace was silent. Both of his hands were balled up into fists by his side, as if he was trying desperately to hold in his anger.

"I want ya outta here by tomorrow mornin," Ace said. "I can't- I won't have some little sneak around and betrayin' my trust."

The proclamation hit Arturo like a drop door falling beneath him. His stomach dropped as gravity sent him crashing to certain death.

"Fine, if that's the way you want it, man. I'll go pack." Arturo said, keeping his voice low so it wouldn't crack.

In silence, he ignored Billy's sobs and the other's stares, making his way upstairs and towards his room. When he walked inside, he frowned at the opened, ransacked drawers in his dresser. He picked up the phone on his nightstand and dialed Carrie's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey Carrie," Arturo said, cringing as he heard his voice crack. "I uh, I got some bad news and a big favor to ask of you," he swallowed. "I know we barely know each other, but would it be cool if I crashed at your place for a bit? Ace kinda… well, he kicked me out."

"Ingleberry!"

At the sound of the prison guard's voice, Snake jumped. He whipped his head towards the door and saw their face through the tiny window (it wasn't Samson or anyone he recgnized, thank god). Still, his heart raced so loudly he could hear it drumming in his ears.

"Put your hands behind your back through the slot."

Instantly, panicked thoughts raced through his mind. He hadn't been out of his cell since Samson and his cronies…

He ran his hand through his newly sheared off hair.

"Okay," he said. He got up off of his "bed" and felt his body starting to shake. The threat of tears started to prick at his eyes.

No, he wasn't going to cry. Not again. No matter what happened to him this time.

When he got to the door, he did as the officer asked, feeling the familiar cool metal squeeze into his skinny wrists.

"Alright, take a few steps back. I'm coming in."

After the prison guard unlocked his cell and looked at him, his eyebrows raised in surprise when he saw his hair, but said nothing. Instead, he silently grabbed him by the arm and walked him out.

"Isss it sssshower day alreadysss?" Snake asked, hopefully.

The officer looked at him for a second before letting out a surprised laugh. "The boys were right, you do hiss. I thought they were just pulling my leg," he remarked. "But no, you're not scheduled for a shower today."

Snake started to panic again. "Then what-"

"You'll find out when you get there."

As the officer continued to lead him down the hallway and up the stairs, a myriad of possibilities ran through his mind of what he could possibly be walking towards. Would Samson and his buddies go so far as to beat him? Force him to do something degrading? Or, oh god, did they get in contact with one of the family members of the people he killed and are going to make him confront them face to face? Or Ace himself?

He hoped they were just going to beat him up. That at least he could handle.

By the time the officer stopped in front of a windowless door, Snake was a mere breath away from having a full on panic attack. His skinny knees threatened to buckle underneath him and his eyes started to get wet.

I'm not going to cry, I'm not going to cry, I'm not going to cry.

The officer took out his key and unlocked the door. When Snake saw who else was there, he stared, gobsmacked.

"Mom, Dad? Ivy?!"

His family stared back at him in shock behind a clear window made of plexiglass. On his side, there was a stool and phone to talk to them.

"Alright, I'll be right outside the door. You got thirty minutes Ingleberry, so you better use them wisely."

Snake didn't need to be told twice. As soon as the door clicked behind him, he rushed over towards them and picked up the phone.

His mother, sitting between Ivy and his father, was the first person to grab the phone. "Oh Sanford," she whispered.

"Mom," he breathed. Tears began to drip down his cheeks, but he no longer cared. "How aresss you? I heard- I wasss told you had an accccident-"

"Yes," his father cut him off, snatching the phone from her hands. "Your mother has been worried sick about you."

Even though he knew it was meant to be a way of indirectly blaming him, Snake ignored the jab. His mother was worried about him. She still cared about him, he wasn't forgotten.

"What are yousss guysss doing here?!" Snake asked, still bewildered.

"As you know, I love your mother very much and don't want to see her get hurt," his father explained. "And since it would hurt her to see you behind bars, I promised that I would do everything in my power to help you get out of this… predicament you've found yourself in. For her sake."

Snake looked over at his father. Though he remained stone faced, he could see in his eyes that he was taken aback, either by his son's appearance or from being in a jail at all, he couldn't quite tell. Still, regardless of the bad blood between them, he was offering to help.

"Thank you, Dad," he said, a sentence he never thought he would say again. He looked towards his mother and sister. "All of yousss. Really. My time in here hasss been… Thank you."

Ivy reached over and grabbed the phone from their father, and eyed him with concern. "Snake, what's been going on? And what happened to your hair?"

Self-consciously, Snake reached up and ran his hand through his now short, choppy hair. "It'sss… It's a long sssstory, you don't needsss to hear it."

"The guards have been hurting you, haven't they?!" his mother leaned over and asked on the phone. "I see that bruise on your face! And, goodness, I don't think I've ever seen you this thin before!"

"It'sss fine, Mom. I'm fine. As sssoon as I getsss out of sssolitary, everything will be fine."

"Charles!" His mother turned toward his father. "We need to get him out of there, now. People die in solitary."

He didn't catch everything his father said, but the words "out of my hands" and "denied bail" slipped through, and Snake slumped down in his seat.

"Well, there must be something we can do," his mother insisted. "At the very least, report what's being done to our son to someone in charge-"

"Mom, don't!" Snake said in a panic. "Yousss can't report it. The inmatesss already think I'm a sssnitch. If the guardsss think I'm one too…" he flinched, thinking about the mere possibility. He wasn't exactly sure how his life could get worse, but if someone could figure out a way, it would be Samson jr.

His mother looked at him, her blue eyes shining with tears. "Oh Sanford, I'm so sorry. We'll find a way to get you out of here, I promise."

After that, Ivy gently nudged her and asked her to hand her back the phone.

"This is all my fault, Snake," she said. "I never should've told you to turn yourself in. If you had gone with Ace to Mexico…" she shook her head. "I… I didn't know how bad it was going to be. I'm sorry."

"It'sss not your fault, Ivy," he said with a tearful smile. "This wasss all me."

His father took the phone from his sister. "Sanford, since we're on a time limit, I want to tell you this now. I've contacted a lawyer who is currently reviewing your case; he should be setting up a meeting with you shortly to go over what the best course of action will be."

Snake felt his heart race. He was finally going to get some news about his trial; the one thing he had been begging for ever since he got here. "Do you knowsss when he'll be coming?"

"Should be within a few days," his father said. His face softened slightly. "Don't worry son, we'll figure something out. No Ingleberry should be forced to endure what you have, and it won't continue if I have anything to say about it."

If Arturo had one thing left to be grateful of in this world, it was Carrie.

When he had called her the previous night, practically begging to stay at her place, he had felt more pathetic than he had in a long, long time. But she agreed without hesitation.

"If I'm being honest, I had a feeling something like this was gonna happen after that call," she told him. "Did you ever find out what he was so mad about?"

"Some bullshit misunderstanding," he said, unable to keep the anger out of his voice. "He's got this… girlfriend, I guess, who has it out for me. She made up some bull and he took her side over mine."

"That's rough," she said. "You said he gave you until tomorrow to get your stuff?"

"Yeah," Arturo said. "Though it ain't like I got much I care about keeping. I've learned to travel light."

"Alright," she said. "You can come by tomorrow any time after ten. I want to sleep in as much as I can because I gotta work tomorrow night."

"Yeah, for sure man," Arturo said. "And really, thanks again. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Carrie was silent for a moment. "I'll see you tomorrow, Arturo," she said. "Try and keep yourself out of trouble until then."

Arturo sighed as he held up the trashbag he used as a makeshift suitcase. It was filled with the few belongings he had; his clothes, socks, and underwear, his toothbrush and shower supplies, the old pocket comb his father had given him right before he was sent to prison, and several photos of his family and friends. Thinking about a specific one at that moment, he put down his trashbag and pulled out his wallet, staring at a picture of him with Ace, both of them grinning like idiots over their stash of stolen beer and snacks. He had a gap in his smile where he had just lost his last baby tooth a few weeks prior, and Ace's sunglasses slipped from his nose, still just a little too big for his face. He flipped it over and saw it written in Snake's careful handwriting: "Ace and Arturo's Birthday Week."

Arturo remembered that day; it was the first birthday he had celebrated with the gang, and the first one away from his family. When Ace had seen him pouting that morning and he told him what day it was, he patted him on the shoulder and grinned.

"Well, what do ya know? I'm turnin' the big one-five in a few days myself," he said. "Don't worry kid, I'll show youse just how much fun you can have on ya special day without ya parents lookin' over ya shoulder the whole time. Tell ya what, we'll make a whole week of it."

Snake, who in retrospect was jealous as hell of how much attention Ace was giving him, spent the entire week sulking and trailing behind the pair, only going along with it all under the threat of a punch to the nose from Ace.

Once a happy memory, Arturo's stomach turned as he thought of Ace now, and of what happened to Snake. Those carefree days were long gone, and he didn't realize until now that they were never coming back.

As if in a trance, Arturo picked up his bag and made his way down the stairs, greeted only by Ace sitting on the couch watching TV. His longtime friend didn't even look at him.

"Hey man, I got my stuff," Arturo spoke up, forcing Ace to recognize his presence.

In response, Ace simply grunted in acknowledgement.

"Here," Arturo said. He walked over towards his former leader, and tossed the photo on his lap.

"What's this?" Ace asked, picking it up and staring at it.

"It's yours now. It was taking up too much space in my wallet."

Ace looked the photo over, flipping it over before turning it face up again. "This thing is ancient. Youse kept it in ya wallet this whole time?" He asked in surprise, turning his head slightly towards him and pulling down his sunglasses.

"I guess," Arturo shrugged. "I don't want it anymore though."

Ace was silent for a moment, his face unreadable. "Whatever," he turned his head back towards the TV.

Holding his tongue to stop himself from going on a rant, Arturo walked towards the front door, sparing Ace one last look.

"I hope she's worth it, man," he said, not fully being able to stop himself from saying something. "I really do. Cause if not… well, I hope you handle it better than last time."

"Alright Blossom," Professor Marlow said. "Are you ready to start?"

"Huh?" Blossom rubbed the sleeplessness from her eyes. "Oh yeah. Sure."

"You look exhausted," Professor Marlow remarked, his bushy eyebrows furrowing in concern. "Did you have trouble sleeping?"

"It was nothing," Blossom shrugged, letting out a yawn. "Just a bad dream."

She wasn't exactly sure where it all came from, but she spent the better part of last night dreaming that she was five again, still with her powers and fighting crime. In it, Mojo had been attacking Townsville with one of his miscellaneous giant robots, as he often did when he was still alive, but this time he had been winning.

"Help us, Blossom!" Bubbles' voice cried out as she and Buttercup were hit with one of Mojo's lasers and had fallen to the ground. "Help us!"

Blossom felt her stomach drop as she watched her sisters fall from the sky and crash to the ground like twin blue and green meteorites. For some reason, they had seemed so much more fragile to her in the dream than they ever had back then.

"Kick his butt, Blossom!" Buttercup had called to her. "Come on, you can do it! Use your ice breath!"

"We'll see who's butt will be kicked by whom!" Mojo laughed. "You may have had your small successes in the past, but this time it will be I, Mojo Jojo, who will reign supreme in the butt kicking, from now until the end of time-"

Blossom blew towards Mojo's direction with every bit of strength she had in her, but to her surprise, nothing but lukewarm air came out.

"What the-"

Before she could finish her sentence, she felt a hot, stinging pain as Mojo shot her with his laser gun.

"Ahh!" she screamed. Like her fallen sisters before her, she went into a freefall and braced herself for the impact with the ground below.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw Mojo, impossibly large in his makeshift robot above her laughing.

"Silly little girls, thinking they could defeat me, Mojo Jojo!" he taunted. "Me, a supergenius, me, Professor Utonium's first and forgotten child! Me, who is the greatest villain in all of Townsville! Or, I will be," Mojo smirked. "As soon as I rid our dear Townsville of you little abominations!"

He lifted the robot's foot until it was floating right above her and her sisters. Adrenaline raced through Blossom's system as she looked towards them.

"Blossom! Blossom do something!" Bubbles begged her.

"Yeah Blossom! If you have some genius plan up your sleeve to get us outta this, you better use it now!" Buttercup chimed in.

"I…I can't move…" Blossom desperately tried to get out of the way, but it was as if the ground had swallowed her up and refused to let go.

"Blossom!"

"Girls!" Blossom exclaimed. "Girls, I'm stuck! You gotta get up and go!"

"We can't!" Buttercup grunted. "We're stuck too!"

Sheer panic rose up in Blossom's chest as her sisters screamed by her side and the massive block of metal was coming closer and closer.

"Help!" She eventually cried out. "Professor! Dad! Help us!"

Just seconds before she could feel the crushing pain of her demise, she woke up with a start, also waking up a very concerned Bubbles in the process. After that dream, she hadn't been able to get even a wink of sleep.

"Blossom?" Professor Marlow spoke up again, pulling her out of her thoughts. "If you want to postpone this for a few days, I completely understand-"

"No!" Blossom blurted. "No, I'm fine Professor Marlow, really." If there was anything her dream let her know, it was that she needed her powers back, and she needed them back soon.

"Okay," he said hesitantly. "I trust you to know your limits."

"I do," Blossom laid back and closed her eyes.

"Alright, take a deep breath in and out," he paused, doing the same himself as an example. "I want you to picture that same backwards clock from yesterday hanging up on that same blank wall. Let it take you back," *snap* "back," *snap* "all the way back to that very first day. Allow the years to roll past you as if they were seconds. You are with your sisters opening up the first birthday gifts you have ever received. Listen to the sound of wrapping paper ripping, the feel of turning the pages of a book for the very first time, the voices of your family in the background," he snapped his fingers again. "Tell me Blossom, where are you?"

Blossom smiled as she watched Bubbles and Buttercup flutter around the house in excitement, the tension from her nightmare the previous night slipping away. "I'm home."

"Very good. Now when I snap my fingers again, I want you to fast forward to the next day," he snapped his fingers once again. "Are you still with your sisters?"

"Yes."

"Where are you, Blossom?"

"We're at school," she said. "The Professor dropped us off for our first day."

"Can you describe it for me?"

Blossom felt a warm feeling in her chest as she recalled the memory. "It was a sunny day. Not too hot, and not too cold. There's a big sign outside that says Pokey Oaks Kindergarten and fresh flowers growing from the ground."

"How do you feel about going to school?"

Blossom shifted in her spot. "I feel excited, and nervous. I've never been to school before. The Professor said it's a place where kids like us will meet other kids and learn things, and I already know I like to learn."

"What happens when you start your day?"

"Our teacher greets us at the door,and she introduces herself as Ms. Keane. She smiles like she's happy to see us," Blossom says, recalling her former teacher's short brown hair and warm expression. "The other kids look happy too. They all want to sit next to us."

"So, it was a pleasant day, I take it?"

"It was," Blossom's face starts to fall. "Ms. Keane went over the alphabet and let us go outside for recess after snack time.

"Recess was always my favorite part of the day when I was a boy," Professor Marlow said fondly. "What happened during recess? Did you and your sisters learn any new games?"

"..."

"Blossom?"

"Yes," Blossom said in just above a whisper.

"What game did you learn?"

She fidgeted. "Tag."

"What happened when you were playing tag?"

Images of the destructive game flashed through her mind. Glass shattered all over the streets, buildings destroyed, cars ruined beyond repair. In their eagerness and naivety, she and her sisters got rather… excited.

She flinched as she remembered the untold amount of senseless destruction she had been directly responsible for.

"My sisters… well, we went a little… overboard."

"Overboard playing tag?" Professor Marlow said, slightly amused.

As she pictured herself continuing to smash her way throughout the town as badly as any villain ever did, she felt herself curl inward. "We didn't know."

"You didn't know what, Blossom?"

"We didn't know we weren't supposed to use our powers when we were playing."

"Ah," Professor Marlow hummed, as if he finally understood what she meant. "Did you break something?"

Blossom swallowed. "We broke a lot of things."

"Did anyone get hurt?"

"I… I don't know," she said. "Maybe. Probably."

"Did you get in trouble?"

"The Professor did," Blossom said. She cringed as she thought back to how the once happy faces of her classmates turned hateful the next day after they had destroyed their new school. But what was far worse came a few hours later, after the school day ended.

"What happened to the Professor?"

"He was sent to jail," Blossom felt her composure start to slip. "A-And he wasn't there to pick us up from school."

"That sounds really scary," Professor Marlow said. "Did you know where he was?"

"No," Blossom sniffed. "No one told us anything. We thought… we thought he left us there because he didn't like us anymore. That he abandoned us."

"Oh my," he clicked his tongue in sympathy. "How did you get home?"

"We walked home," Blossom said. "It was raining and really dark."

"But you could fly. Why would you choose to walk home in the rain?"

"The night before, the Professor told us to not use our powers in public anymore. I was… I was trying to be good…"

"Did you get home safe?"

"We didn't know our way back yet," she thought back that evening, the rain soaking through her clothes and the chilly wind cutting at her skin. She remembered seeing the Gangreen Gang for the first time, and how frightening they looked. She wasn't sure exactly what they had been planning to do, but before she and her sisters could find out someone from the shadows had stepped in…

"We ran into this guy," she said, her voice shaky. "He… he promised us our powers were good even if no one else thought so and he said he was going to help us-"

"Blossom honey, you're crying. Open your eyes," Professor Marlow snapped his fingers.

Blossom did so and was once again pulled away from her past and back into the present. True enough, she wiped her hand underneath her eyes and felt the wet tears.

"Here," Professor Marlow offered her a box of tissues, to which she eagerly accepted.

"I'm sorry," she said, still sniffling. "I don't know what happened-"

"You don't have to apologize for crying, Blossom. It's perfectly natural, especially when we relive traumatic memories."

He reached over to the coffee cable where a kettle and a couple of cups were sitting, and he filled one of them up.

"Here," he said. "It's chamomile, it should help you calm down."

"Thank you," Blossom said. She reached for the cup and took a sip, but flinched when it burned her tongue.

"Careful, it's still quite warm."

Before she attempted another drink, she closed her eyes and blew on it to cool it down. When she tried to take another drink, she was confused when nothing came out.

She opened her eyes and to her shock, the tea that was boiling hot a second ago was now frozen solid.

Lunartyk: You definitely make a good point, but I guess you'll just have to wait to see how right (or wrong) you might be in the end ;)

GGGFan: Thank you! :D Yeah, it's definitely going to his head a bit lol. That and just general paranoia.

Anon: Yeah, I definitely would not want to be in his shoes right now. Though at least he got a small break from the awfulness in this chapter lol

Thanks to everyone still reading this fic! If you liked this chapter feel free to let me know what you thought! :D