A FEW HOURS LATER...
After Balin finished his audition and said goodbye to his school friends, he saw that Loona wasn't in the courtyard to pick him up this time, which made Matt and Amy a little confused too.
So walking further out into the courtyard to find her, he was soon greeted by a pair of hands over his eyes.
"Guess who..." sang two familiar female voices.
"Neptune? Marijiana?" said the boy in surprise. "What are you two doing here?"
"Picking you up from school, aren't we?" giggled Marijiana.
"But where's Loona?" he asked again.
"Oh, she's at Blitzø's place with the crew, honey." replied Neptune. "They're having a movie night to celebrate your birthday target, and they're just getting ready."
"Wow, that's cool." smiled Balin.
"Yeah. C'mon. Let's get you home." chuckled Marijiana, as the boy held each of their hands. "But first, why not have a little... milkshake time!" she then cooed.
Giggling at the idea, the boy and his two hellhound groupies in disguise walked from the school and down to the mall.
AT BLITZØ'S APARTMENT...
The I.M.P gang were preparing for the movie night to celebrate taking down General 'Nha-bi-Chay' from the Vietnamese bounty picked by the birthday boy himself.
After her shopping from earlier, Loona organised each grocery from the shopping bag and prepared them for some cooking.
Along with the ANZAC cookies she got, she was also preparing the Johnson family's traditional Veterans Day snacks: Gallipoli muffins, with almond flakes, ginger, dates, and a hint of lemon essence.
With those ingredients prepped in a cooking bowl, Loona looked at the recipe.
"Let's see here..." she spoke to herself, tracing along the methods step by step.
The first method was mixing, and Blitzø didn't have a beater because of how 'good of a chef' he was.
But with all the ingredients mixed into one super gooey batch, it was gonna be difficult since Loona had enough strength as a hellhound to snap the batch into two, as she would her targets.
So groaning to herself, she cracked her knuckles and set off to work.
Over the next two minutes, she kept on stirring and mixing with her paws. But the dough was too sticky, she roughly handled it like play-dough. From stretching it or flailing it around in her mouth, she growled in frustration.
...
Meanwhile, Millie set the table with food, including the spring rolls from Vietnam and the ANZAC cookies on a cookie tray, and fluffed the pillows and bean-bags.
...
However, Moxxie had chores of his own: airing out and cleaning Loona's old room.
From washing the plates in her personal bathroom, which smelt of cinnamon and a little blood, to hiding her top-secret bong and dildo collection.
One job he had left was most chilling.
Moxxie had to replaced the ripped-up blankets and pillows, but he had to clean up the whole bed in general first. This meant the most chilling part... getting rid of the fleas on it.
Holding a flea comb in one hand, he tiptoed over to the bed, shivering and regurgitating like he was about to pass out. As he got closer by the second and closed one eye, he slowly lifted the blanket with his second hand, and saw a swarm of fleas bouncing up and down like chirping potatoes.
Grossed out at the sight, Moxxie exclaimed before fainting from the bedroom fumes, with a couple of fleas jumping onto him.
A FEW MOMENTS LATER...
30 minutes later, Loona managed to get the muffins in the oven in near perfect condition, then sat down and panted like a normal dog trying to catch her breath.
Before long, she got a notification on her phone and picked it up from the counter to see it was a text from Neptune and Marijiana, or as she called them: INTERNS.
"Yo, Lunes. We're comin' home."
Showing a smile at that, Loona grabbed the Grimoire and opened a portal from Earth to see Balin and the two hound girls with milkshakes in their hands.
"Really? Shakes?" scoffed Loona playfully.
"D-Don't blame me!" flushed Balin defensively, before pointing at Nep and Mari. "It was their idea."
"I mean, who can't say no to an after-school milkshake?" Neptune giggled, sipping her shake and wagging her tail in excitement.
"Obviously, all the little dudes who ordered them at that McDonalds place." Marijiana chuckled in response.
Loona then knelt down to Balin's level and grabbed his school bag from his shoulders.
"So how was school this time, kiddo?" she asked him with a soft smile.
"It was good." replied the boy, based off of what happened earlier today.
"Oh! How about that audition you told me about?"
"Audition?" Nep and Mari's ears perked up.
"Kid, you know we love hearing you perform. Why do you leave these shows at the last minute?" asked Moxxie with a chuckle.
"I know, right?" Loona rolled her eyes responding to the imp, before returning to the boy. "Well...? I'm waiting..."
"Aw, well, it was nothing." blushed the little boy, rather cheekily. "Except, I got in."
"YOU DID?!" all five demons gasped at the sound of it.
"Yeah. It's an end-of-school-year variety show, and a lot of other kids are doing it.
"Including you!" Loona smiled and hugged him tight with a fast-wagging tail, taking him by surprise. "I'm proud of you, kiddo!"
Soon, Loona opened her eyes to see everyone's surprise as well, before clearing her throat. "I mean, good job. I'm really glad." she flushed as she ruffled Balin's head.
"So, enough about my day. What are you guys doing?" asked the boy. "Neptune and Marijiana told me you guys are watching a movie."
"Damn straight, darling." smiled Millie. "The movie we're watching's called Inglorious Bast-"
"Millie!" Moxxie quickly covered Millie's mouth.
"Yeah... he'll be in my room for the movie." Loona then spoke flat but firm.
"Why? Does it have... adult stuff, in it?" the boy asked curiously.
"Oh yeah." replied Loona. "C'mon, I got rid of the bad smells. Right through here."
So following Loona as everyone else got comfortable on the couch, she slightly opened her bedroom door to see Blitzø lying on her bed feeling miserable, before sitting up, looking at his phone with a sad sigh.
"Ugh... goddamnit Blitzø." Loona thought in her head and pinched her snout.
"You think... the fight got to him?" Millie asked her husband.
"But... why?"
With a more widened expression on his depressed face, Blitzø started having flashbacks as Mulan's 'Reflection' played in his head.
...
FLASHBACK:
(1)
When Blitzø was a kid, he and his family; including his parents Buckzo and Tilly, his long-lost estranged sister Barbie-Wire, and for a while, his BFF Fizzarolli, all grew up in a circus in the Greed ring.
Like him and Fizz, Blitzø and Barbie did half of everything together, from performing in the big-top to selling balloon animals and cotton candy to the children.
BLITZØ:
Look at me.
I will never pass for a perfect son
Or a perfect demon
Can it be
I'm not meant to play this part...
Now I see
That if I were truly to be myself
I'd break my company's heart.
(2)
The rest of the flashback and the song went on a few years later, to a traumatic incident with the circus Blitzø witnessed when all three were teenagers.
BLITZØ:
Who is that imp I see
Staring straight back at me?
Why is my reflection someone I don't know
Somehow I cannot hide
Who I am, though I've tried
When will my reflection show, who I am, inside
FLASHBACK ENDS
...
As the flashbacks ended, Blitzø closed his eyes and laid back on the bed.
BLITZØ:
When will my reflection show,... who I am, inside...
Loona looked at her adopted dad with little interest, but showed her lowered ears in concern.
The boss felt the matters move as he was likely about to cry, then stood back up to see it was Balin sitting on the edge of the bed next to him.
"Balin?"
"You have quite a nice voice, Mr. Blitzø." said Balin kindly.
"I do. Don't I?" chuckled the boss with a blush, before realising what he was talking about. "Uhh, what singing? How much of that did you hear?"
"A LOT OF IT!" shouted Moxxie from outside the room.
"Are you okay?" asked Balin. "What's wrong?"
"Yeah. You know whether I'm here or not, you're not supposed to be in here without my permission." said Loona firmly. "Besides, you do know there used to be fleas on that, right?"
Blitzø didn't reply. He just sighed again.
"Do you... want to talk about it?"
This made Blitzø's eyes widen. Normally, the boss wouldn't talk about his past life with anyone. Not even his own adopted daughter.
"I understand if you don't want to." continued Balin. "I was just asking."
"I know, kid, I know." sympathised Blitzø. "You see,... we took care of that birthday target of yours today. And during that, I was... we got compromised, just a little bit."
"What's compromised?"
"It's... it's, being reminded of an event you're not proud of. In my case." Blitzø explained further. "Especially during another important time."
"It's... your sister, for this one, isn't it?" said Loona quietly.
"You have a sister?" Balin was soon intrigued to hear that from him. "I didn't know that. That's so cool."
"Yeah. It really is, huh?" Blitzø then showed a small smile, before pulling up his phone and showing him a poster from the I.M.P building.
'The Amazing IMP TWINS: Blitzø and Barbie Wire'
"Wow." said the boy feeling stunned. "So that girl on the office poster I've been looking at. Barbie-Wire, is your sister?"
"Yep. A helluva one." grinned Blitzø lightly. "Did you know we grew up in a circus together?"
"A circus?" Balin tilted his head. "I thought you worked at a cinema."
"What makes you think a cinema, little buddy?" chuckled the boss.
"It says 'Now Showing' at the left side of the poster." the little boy pointed out on the poster.
"Okay, okay, I see what you mean." laughed Blitzø. "No, Barb and I, you can call her Barb too, we... when we were kids, our family was full of entertainers and fr- Uhh, circus acts, alike. We were the talk of the ring. Heh, specifically Fizz."
"Did you like working gat the circus?" asked Balin.
BLITZØ: "I... uh, I actually did. There were some... hardships. But we did everything together. Just me and my sister, against the rings. I felt like I had it all. The love of a family, at most, but everything else? Not so much. A normal day in the life of an imp, like me. Until... one moment, I just... I-I, lost almost everything."
Blitzø then closed his eyes feeling like he was gonna cry, so Loona strutted over to comfort him, not standing to see him that sad.
"Hey. Hey. Dad, it's okay." she soothed him, making him looked up in mere surprise. "It was just a long time ago. Sure, she doesn't-... but, Fizz did, and cares about you now. Maybe a lot of other people do."
"...Why doesn't Barbie... about something?" Balin asked in all his curiosity. "Did something happen?"
"Uhm, only a little..." Blitzø stuttered a bit, blowing his nose.
"But you know, he'll tell when he feels ready." added Loona for him. "Not a lot of people share their secrets as brave and easy as you do."
"Okay. Sorry for asking you that, Mr. Blitzø." apologised Balin.
"Ah, no need to be sorry, squirt. Obviously, that something happened way before you were born anyway, so, hmm!"
Soon, Blitzø stood up from Loona's bed and was about to walk out to the TV, until he stopped past Loona.
"Thanks. F-For the help." he said in gratitude.
"Hey. A daughter's gotta take care of her dad too." replied Loona. "As long as he gets the fuck outta her room."
"Fair enough." shrugged Blitzø before leaving the room.
Loona rolled her eyes, feeling better herself hearing her adoptive dad's playful energy again.
"So, the movie's about a couple hours." she spoke to Balin next. "Do you think you can survive a couple of hours, playing on your phone or taking a nap until it's finish-?"
Before she could finish, Loona turned around to see the little boy napping on her now comfy bed like a little baby, cuddling her slightly torn body-pillow in his arms.
"Good. I'll see you in a little bit." she smiled
With that, Loona gave the little boy a kiss on the cheek and walked out to watch Tarantino's 'Inglorious Bastards.'
...
As he slept, Balin soon got a nightmare about the words Stella had said to him during his audition practice, from him being a potential disappointment to I.M.P to him being an abomination with his new abilities.
So waking up, he came up with an idea to prove her wrong.
...
During the movie, while everyone else had popcorn, Blitzø just poured an ice-cream cup filled with spray cheese down his mouth, and began cooing to his My Little Pony figurines as the cheese squirted out from his horns like a sprinkler.
"...I didn't know we could do that." Moxxie leaned closer to Millie in surprise.
Just then, Balin came out of Loona's room and walked over to the crew with somewhat... courage.
"Hey, Mr. Blitzø. I have a question." he asked, which made the boss and his collectables look at him. "Are those My Little Ponies?"
"Guys, I'd like to introduce you to your new grand-colt." Blitzø spoke to the ponies before Balin. "Indeed they are, kiddo. This one here is named Uranus."
This name made Loona's ears perk up hearing the name. She started growling with every other 'clearly inappropriate' name he said, little by little.
BLITZØ: "And this one here's Hamburger Helper, along with Bloody Mary, Deep Touch, That-Way, and this little guy is John."
"GRRRRR-Huh?"
Loona stopped growling, confused on that last name.
"John?" asked Balin in surprise.
"One of the 'hardest' names I could search up." cooed Blitzø, showing John the pony.
"Uhh, question. Do they coo back to you, sir?" asked Moxxie.
"C'mon!" laughed Blitzø. "They're just toys! What, Moxx thinks I'm that much of an idiot?"
"No, no, he knows what a brony is now, sir-" Millie was about to finish.
"I was talking to John." Blitzø replied again, before speaking to Balin. "So, how may I help?"
"Uhh, Mr. Blitzø?" Balin cleared his throat. "I was wondering, if there's any more missions coming up soon. Because... I'd like to help this time."
Loona gasped with a frightened whine.
"No, no, no, no!" she said. "Sorry, kid. But we can't bring you. A lot of people sometimes get hurt on those missions, and I don't want it being you."
"Oh. I understand." said Balin with a little acceptance. "I guess it didn't hurt to ask. Didn't it?"
"No./YES!" Loona and Blitzø said at the same time, making Loona look at him flabbergasted and everyone else go 'WHAT?!'
"But sir, aren't those missions dangerous especially for a little human boy, like Balin?" asked Moxxie. "What if he gets hurt or killed?"
"I know. But think about it. We could be an unstoppable powerhouse!" said Blitzø. "If the kid wants a little adventure, then maybe we could show him what kinda superhero work we do. Please? Pleeeease? He can stay with his mommy the whole time."
Loona groaned hearing Blitzø act all childish like this, then rolled her eyes as she gave her statement.
"...Fine, I guess he could come." she sighed heavily. "But I want him at either one of his side if he separates from me, keeping an eye on him. And not on some heavy hitter missions! Got it!?" she then threatened the imps.
"Yep, yeah, sure, no probs." the I.M.P crew all said individually, before getting back to the movie.
As Balin took a sniff then a small bite out of one of the rice paper rolls, filled with oregano and chilli, he soon heard gunshots coming from the TV with one bite, making him jump in fright.
Seeing this, Loona pulled him closed to her furry body, making them both melt in this embrace as if they forgot for a moment, this movie wasn't for children at all.
LATER THAT NIGHT...
After the movie, Balin brushed his teeth and Loona lead him to his room, climbing into his bed to cuddle his teddies.
"C'mon, let's get some sleep now." she softly spoke. "We're gonna need to get up early if we wanna talk about whatever mission you can come on. As long, as it's a safe one."
"I have school tomorrow, Loona." yawned Balin. "Can we talk about it before or after?"
"Like I said, we'll see." shrugged the hellhound, as she gave him a lick on the cheek. "Good night, Meal."
As Loona left his bedroom and he closed his eyes, Balin sighed, feeling only a little worried. About Tomorrow or any day I.M.P had a mission he could come with them on.
"I'll show you I.M.P cares about me, Mrs. Stella."
The boy thought to himself, now showing a look of determination in his sleep before completely dozing off for the night.
A/N: See y'all in the next chapter.