Endless Possibilities

Endless Possibilities

Author's Note: Things are about to get more intense, while at the same time becoming a little more light-hearted, if that makes sense. Just be patient and...look a little closer than usual. You just might find something.

Chapter 10

XxXxX

The sky was a rich shade of orange and pink, filled with but the thinnest of clouds. Thick forest grew on every side of the clearing, overflowing with leafy trees and wildflowers. Birds sang loudly and the bugs practically screamed as the sun began setting on a peaceful day. The leaves crunched and twigs snapped beneath a pair of heavy boots. The bushes rustled and a neatly dressed figure stumbled through, coughing and brushing the dirt from his dark shirt.

“Wow, I found it,” The man walked out into the clearing, gasping when he came to a sudden stop in the rich foliage. In the middle of the bountiful field was a dead space. An empty wasteland, several years wide, where not even an insect dared to fly. Professor Utonium stuck his hands in his pockets, walking into the dead area. He swallowed hard, terrified to find that even the air was heavy and dead.

“Even after all these years...this place hasn't changed,” He could still recall, plain as day, the massive hole that was now missing. He walked to the center of the clearing and wiped the sweat from his brow. Even though the air was cool and comfortable, he felt uncomfortably hot. Like a searing fire was blazing right in front of him. The Professor sighed and tugged at his collar, kneeling down and rubbing his hand through the dirt.

“Dry and hot...not at all like the forest. What was this place? This is where I found him...” The Professor climbed to his feet and sighed, looking up at the evening sky. He heard rustling, and turned quickly. The scientist laughed nervously and shook his head, taking out his pipe and lightning it.

“Relax Jimmy, you're letting this place get to you,” The Professor began walking toward the setting sun, following the trail of the dead ground. It burst into life after a point, so abruptly that it seemed impossible. He continued walking forward, gasping at what he eventually found stretched out before him. A massive canyon, stretching further than the eye could see. He could even find the bottom, but the forest seemed to extend into it. Rising up from the canyon, like foot falls were strangely formed...pillars of stone, covered completely in thick moss.

“That's impossible...and yet...” Somehow the Professor knew he had seen this spot somewhere before. He peered over the edge, his heart racing faster and faster. As he gazed at the pillars of moss covered stone, he almost thought that the distance between them didn't seem so insurmountable.

'Why if one could just get a running start...it would be easy enough to jump across...' He pondered, stroking his chin and puffing his pipe. The Professor jumped, once more hearing the bushes rustle. He spun around and was greeted by the strangest sight. Three men in cloaks were sitting in the middle of the clearing, building a campfire. He chuckled nervously when one of the men, his blue eyes piercing, looked up with an unreadable expression. The scientist waved absentmindedly, stalking toward them with great trepidation.

“Um...hello there! I didn't expect to see anyone else out here,” He called sheepishly. Now all three of the men were looking at him. The Professor swallowed and came to a halt several feet from where they sat. The Professor felt an unnerving sense of familiarity. He had felt such piercing stares before, as though these men were peering into his soul. The first man spoke, in a voice that ran deep as a river.

“You have returned,” The Professor froze, tapping out his pipe. He cleared his throat and looked around nervously. Finally, he gave the first man a confused stare.

“I'm sorry?” The man looked back down to the campfire. His companions had long since stopped looking at the Professor, instead peering into the crackling flames. The Professor cleared his throat and put his hand in his pocket, puffing his pipe. The first man spoke, without looking away from the fire. It came so suddenly, and with such weight, that the Professor lost his breath.

“Your journey has just begun, ours is nearing completion,” The Professor put out his pipe, pondering over the man's words. He opened his mouth several times, hoping each time that the words would come to him. Every time, he closed it in frustration. Finally, he pieced together a coherent thought.

“Your journey? Where are you headed?” The men sat, unmoving, watching the fire. The Professor, too, found his eyes drawn to it. Something in the flickering flames struck a chord within his soul. Something so concealed, so distant that he couldn't begin to decipher it. But something that, nonetheless, was so powerful he felt as though it may be the most important chord ever struck. He cleared his throat, unblinking while watching the dancing flames. Again, the first man's words startled him.

“To the north, there is a mountain. We journey so that we may climb it,” The Professor licked his lips. Despite the unnatural heat that seemed to be blazing in his face, a frigid chill ran down his spine. The Professor continued to stare unblinking into the fire. It seemed as though the world around him had stopped spinning.

“Is there...any reason? Something at the top of the mountain?” The men put out the fire and rose to their feet. The Professor jumped, suddenly aware of his surroundings once more. They began to walk toward the canyon at the end of the clearing. The first man stopped, turning and making eye contact with the Professor.

“When you're ready, you will know. Your journey has just begun,” The man joined his companions. The Professor watched them walk toward the canyon, stopping to turn and look at the burnt mark on the ground. He turned back, calling out. He froze. The men had disappeared. The Professor sighed and shook his head, making his way back into the forest. He was still no closer to understanding the mysterious story of Aku and the Nameless Prince. But...though he tried to ignore, something had stirred in him. Perhaps, he had taken his first step in the right direction.

XxXxX

Ms. Keane walked around the room, smiling faintly while the students sat and worked hard on their Special Person project. She noticed that the Rowdyruff Boys weren't working, and quickly went to investigate. She smiled sheepishly, kneeling down in front of their desk.

“I'm sorry boys, I forgot to tell you about this project,” She apologized. The boys stopped talking and turned to her with varying degrees of irritation. Butch glanced at Brick, making sure to wear a matching look of annoyance. Boomer only looked confused, looking around the room.

“Uh...so what is it?” He asked. Ms. Keane smiled and folded her hands under her chin.

“Well everyone in class is going to be giving a presentation about a person they feel is very special to them. It can be a family member, a parent, or even a friend. You need to be able to talk about this person for a few minutes, and you'll need to make a 'visual aid' to help with your presentation,” The all seemed confused. Brick snickered and laughed.

“That sounds so lame! What's a 'vishalaid' anyway?” He asked, elbowing Butch, who snickered in response. Ms. Keane's lip twitched, but she kept a pleasant look on her face.

“Well a visual aid can be a Powerpoint, a posterboard, a drawing, just something that you've made to help with your presentation,” Boomer rubbed his chin, peaking over that the next table. Elmer was gluing colored pieces of construction paper to his posterboard.

“So we can do anything?” He asked. Ms. Keane nodded, slightly awed by Boomer's interest. Brick and Butch traded a droll glance and shrugged.

“Yeah, whatever. It sounds stupid,” Brick muttered, glaring at Boomer. Butch nodded.

“Yeah, real stupid,” He mumbled in agreement. Ms. Keane shook her head, rising to her feet.

“Well that may be, but you still need to work on the project. It's not due for a while, so don't feel like you're in a hurry. But don't dawdle too much!” The boys muttered varying responses. Ms. Keane returned to patrolling the room, already seeing a few hands in the air.

At the Powerpuff Girls' table, only one of the three girls seemed to be accomplishing much for her project. Buttercup sat, staring a blank sheet of paper, while Blossom seemed to have discovered something fascinating in the ceiling. Bubbles colored and hummed happily to herself, gluing on glitter, paper hearts, and filling any blank space with a menagerie of doodles. Buttercup glared at her sister, leaning forward on her mitt.

“How is this so easy for you?” She asked in frustration. Bubbles stopped and stuck out her tongue.

“Cause I'm the most creative! It's easy, silly! Who are you using?” Buttercup sighed and stared at her blank paper, glaring at Bubbles' admittedly great poster.

“I dunno yet...I didn't wanna use the Professor 'cause you took him and everyone would think I copied you,” Buttercup complained, returning her scowl to her blank paper. Bubbles giggled and shook her head.

“No one will think that! C'mon he's our dad!” She pointed out. Buttercup sighed and looked away.

“Yeah...I'll probably use the Professor,” The green puff conceded. She began writing a few details on her paper, glancing over at Bubbles' poster every so often. Though the two did little to keep their voices down, throughout the exchange Blossom hadn't heard a word. As she stared at the ceiling, eyes half-closed, her lips slightly parted, she focused in on the only bit of information written in her notebook.

'Who is my Special Person?' Of course all of the obvious answers had crossed her mind. There was, of course, the Professor. Her father figure, who had created her and raised her as his own daughter. Then there was Ms. Keane. If she were to consider anyone a mother, her teacher would come the closest. She had gone above and beyond her duty as an instructor and had been a friend to the girls.

Blossom closed her eyes. There were numerous people who she...could consider special. The mayor, despite all of his shortcomings. Ms. Bellum, who had been there almost as much as Ms. Keane had. Even Talking Dog, despite how frustrating the mutt had been, he was certainly...special. But all of these obvious choices felt wrong.

'There's always Bubbles and Buttercup...' Blossom opened her eyes and lowered her head, turning to look at her sisters. They were both working hard. Both had chosen the Professor, she noticed with a frown. If neither was going to use her, or even each other, she'd feel stupid picking one of them as her special person. Blossom breathed deep and slowly let it out, trying to avoid drawing attention to herself.

'Who is my Special Person?' She bit her lip, rolling the question over and over again in her head. What did the question really mean? A person who was special to her, in a way that others weren't. Blossom had tried to avoid it, but her face was heating up. She pulled her notebook close to her and began writing, but only one word at a time. She wasn't sure she wanted to put down a complete thought; snippets would have to suffice for now. As she mulled over the direction she'd begun toward, she questioned her own reasoning.

'I don't...even know what it is...that I feel. I just...I know it's not like anything I ever felt before...' A chill ran down her spine, and Blossom smiled secretively. At the front of the room, trying to be discreet, Ms. Keane had noticed Blossom's silent deliberation. She pursed her lips curiously. Blossom had been acting very strange lately. It was a kind of strange that the teacher was used to seeing in teenagers, rather than children.

XxXxX

Recess had gone smoothly without the Rowdyruff Boys to ruin everyone's fun. Unfortunately, being kept in while the others went out to play had served to greatly irk the villains turned school children. And the nap time following recess would prove to be a challenge for all parties involved.

'Stupid school...if this wasn't part of the stupid plan I'd so kick that stupid girl's butt!' Brick thought spitefully, glaring across the room to where Blossom was sleeping. In light of his antics the day before, Ms. Keane had made sure he was kept as far from the pink puff as possible. Brick crossed his arms and glared at the ceiling. He wasn't about to let the know-it-all get off so easily. The Rowdyruff leader looked around, spotting Ms. Keane at her desk. She was preoccupied, giving him a chance to snatch the nearest object, a piece of paper. He laid back down quickly, glancing back at the teacher. As silently as he could, he crumpled the paper into a ball, hiding it beneath his blanket.

'Just gotta wait for it...' Brick grinned when Ms. Keane wasn't looking, hurtling the paper ball across the room. He quickly rolled over and pretended to be sleeping, struggling to hold in his laughter when he heard an angry huff. Brick chanced glancing over his shoulder, snickering mischievously. He'd managed to catch the red-haired heroine before she drifted off. Now she was sitting up, scowling at the room in annoyance. Blossom threw the paper ball away and laid back down, sighing and pulling her blanket up to her chin.

'I don't think so!' Brick looked up, giggling when he saw his chance. He grabbed the next nearest object, someone else's shoe, and flung it at Blossom. He rolled over and nearly lost it when he heard the resounding clunk of the object hitting her head.

“Ow!!” Blossom sat up holding her head, with a dangerous glint in her eyes. Ms. Keane looked up, frowning.

“Blossom, what's wrong?” Blossom grabbed the shoe and glared across the room, trembling. As far as she could tell, Brick was fast asleep. She looked down at the shoe and sighed.

“Nothing Ms. Keane...” Blossom shoved the shoe away, laying back down and rubbing her head tenderly. She pulled the blanket tightly around her again, desperate to drift off to sleep. Though, excited as she was to finally get her nap, she was nervous as to what it would entail. Blossom peaked out and carefully smoothed her dress. Feeling that it was still dry, she sighed in content and closed her eyes, a small smile spreading across her lips.

'Oh man, I'm gonna get caught if I try that again...but I can't let her win...hey!' Brick noticed that Boomer was sprawled out and drooling just below Blossom. If he could wake his stupid brother up, the blue ruff could help him torment his counterpart. Brick looked around, trying to find something else to throw. Whatever it was...he'd need to be careful. Boomer was an idiot and would probably draw attention to himself. Unfortunately, there wasn't anything close by to throw...anything safe at least. Brick glowered and stared at Boomer. As carefully as he could manage, he fired a weak heat ray at his brother. That did the trick.

“Huh? What? Who's there?” Boomer mumbled, starting to sit up. Thankfully he noticed Brick before Ms. Keane saw him waking up. Brick motioned for Boomer to lay back down, and was met with a blank stare of confusion. Brick slapped his face and laid down himself, motioning for Boomer to do the same. Boomer nodded and laid down, shrugging. Brick pointed at Blossom and jerked his head. Boomer looked up and noticed the Powerpuff girl, fast asleep and curled up tightly. He frowned and blinked, confused when she giggled softly.

'What's she dreamin' about?' Boomer thought, rubbing his chin. He looked back at Brick, who was making a grabbing motion. Boomer blinked and looked at Blossom again. He furrowed his brow and looked back at his brother, pointing at the puff's blanket. Brick nodded, grinning wickedly. Boomer swallowed hard and reached out, taking hold of Blossom's blanket. He froze in horror, as right at that moment, Blossom moaned softly, curling up tighter. Boomer looked at Brick, who was motioning for him to keep going. With the most care he'd ever excised in his life, Boomer tugged Blossom's blanket away. The puff shuddered and hugged herself, and her pillow, tightly. Brick frowned and laid on his arms in annoyance.

'Man that woke her up yesterday...oh I know!' Brick waved, getting Boomer's attention again. He kicked his foot and pointed at Blossom again. Boomer only response was a blank stare. Brick slapped his forehead and made another pulling motion. Boomer looked up, stumbling over his brother's questionable gestures. Brick growled and pointed harder. Boomer rubbed his chin and followed his brother's mitt. Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed Blossom's foot. Blossom giggled suddenly and jerked her foot away. Boomer jumped and quickly made it look like he was sleeping. No retaliation came his way, so he peaked out again at his brother.

'Now you've got it, you moron!' Brick nodded and grinned, pointing again. Boomer was sweating nervously. He crawled a bit closer to Blossom, peaking between the desks to make sure Ms. Keane wasn't watching. Slowly, like Indiana Jones about to snatch the artifact, he reached out and poked Blossom's foot again. Again, the auburn puff giggled and squirmed, but didn't wake. Brick glared at her, crossing his arms.

'Oh man she's not waking up...' He groaned and laid on his back, glaring while Boomer kept up his covert tickle attack on his sleeping adversary. Brick shook his head when Boomer looked at him again. Boomer nodded and scooted back onto his sleeping mat, shrugging in defeat. Brick propped himself up on his elbow and looked around. He glanced at Ms. Keane, then sat up a bit, grinning when he finally found the perfect weapon.

'Huh? What now?' Boomer thought, looking up over his head. Hanging over the edge of the table next to him was a ruler. Boomer sat up and grabbed it, laying back down quickly and once more feigning sleep. He opened one eye, noticing Brick's devious grin. Brick pointed at Blossom again, making a jabbing motion. Boomer looked up and swallowed, once more crawling closer as quietly as he could. He looked down at the ruler, then back up at Blossom, and finally back at Brick. Brick made another jabbing motion.

'Uh...where?' Boomer wondered. Without giving it any further thought, he crawled closer and stretched his arm out, extending the ruler toward Blossom. While he had intended to poke her in the back, she moved at just the right time for him to miss. The ruler slid up Blossom's dress, and Boomer felt a shiver run through the puff. Blossom moaned again, hugging her pillow tightly. Boomer listened closely, faintly hearing her say something. His cheeks turned red and he looked at his brother again. Brick was glaring at him, anxious for him to get it over with. Boomer nodded and jabbed forward.

Blossom screamed and sat up suddenly, hands flying to her backside. Boomer yelped and threw the ruler down, falling back on his sleeping mat, holding himself up on his hands. Boomer's face was beat red; the embarrassed lump in his throat was so big he could barely swallow. Blossom's eyes were watering, her lips were trembling and, if possible, she was even redder than he was. Worst of all, she looked moments away from killing him.

“Uh...uh...uh...s-sorry?” Boomer managed to stutter out. Brick finally lost it and was laughing hysterically at the other end of the room.

“What is going on over here?! Are we having a problem again?” Ms. Keane asked, glaring at the Rowdyruff, her hands on her hips. Boomer swallowed, finally, and looked up at her nervously. He opened and closed his mouth, his voice long gone. Blossom was mumbling and stuttering, a total transformation from her typically articulate self.

“He stuck...he...that...he put...and then...” She took a deep breath and let it out through clenched teeth. Boomer's blood ran cold as, quite literally, smoke came from the corners of her mouth. Boomer whimpered and held his hands up defensively. Ms. Keane glared at Boomer, speaking in a low, firm voice.

“Boomer come with me,” Boomer nodded, swallowing hard and flying as far around the seething Powerpuff as he could manage. Brick was still laughing wildly at the other end of the room. Ms. Keane turned to Brick, crossing her arms.

“You too, Brick,” Brick's laughter died off and a scowl spread across his face. Groaning he floated with Boomer and Ms. Keane out of the room. Most of the class was wide awake now, staring at Blossom who was still on the verge of an explosion. She finally hissed and grabbed her blanket, curling up and trembling. Sleep was now the further thing from her mind. She bit her lip and carefully smoothed her dress. She wasn't comfortable anymore...but no one would notice with any luck.

XxXxX

The rest of class was uneventful. So much so that Ms. Keane was worried. From the English lesson to the student's lesson in shapes and colors, she felt as though she was talking to herself. As if somehow the obvious distractions her superpowered children were facing was bleeding into her regular students. Speaking of the superpowered students, she was shocked to find that every single one of them was barely paying her any mind.

At the Rowdyruff Boy's table, Brick kept his attention on his desk. At times it looked like he was writing something, other times it looked like he was speaking to himself. Butch, it seemed, never fully woke up after nap time and was making no effort to disguise his sleeping. He laid sprawled out on the table, his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Boomer was still blushing, still flustered from the prank Brick had talked him into. Every so often he glanced back at the girls' table.

The Powerpuff Girls weren't any more attentive than their male counterparts. The teacher couldn't be entirely upset with them, as at least two of them were working on a school related assignment. Buttercup was hunched over a notebook, working more diligently than Ms. Keane had ever seen before. She kept glaring at Bubbles, who was drawing different sketches relating to her project. Bubbles kept smirking at Buttercup and sticking her tongue out. Blossom was distracted in a notably different way. She kept shifting uncomfortably, pressing her legs together. She was flushed and hadn't raised her hand the entire class period.

Before anyone knew it, the bell rang and school was done for the day. The kids quickly rushed for the door, leaving behind the Powerpuff Girls, Ms. Keane, and the still very much asleep Butch, who had been abandoned by his brothers. Ms. Keane sighed and walked over to him, gently shaking him. Butch sat up, biting his tongue and screeching, covering his mouth.

“Ow! What?!” Ms. Keane giggled nervously and clasped her hands.

“Butch, class is over, you can go home,” Butch looked up at the clock and blinked several times. He rubbed his tongue and stood up.

“Oh...okay, cool,” As he was heading for the door, Butch yawned and stretched, hitting Bubbles and knocking the papers out of her hands. Bubbles gasped and Butch jumped, rubbing his arm.

“My drawings!” Butch frowned and snatched up one of the papers as Bubbles quickly stuffed them into her backpack. Butch stared at the drawing. He turned it over several times, blinking.

“Uh...wow...that's really...” Bubbles stood up, blushing and swallowing. She braced herself for the insults about to come. Butch peeked over the drawing, frowning and twitching slightly. He swallowed and held out the paper stiffly. Bubbles blinked and stared in surprise. Butch blushed and looked away, still holding the paper out.

“Um...that's really good...sorry...uh...” Butch was looking around nervously. Bubbles took her drawing back, watching the green ruff closely. To be perfectly honest, she'd never seen him by himself before. Butch clearly wasn't a fan of the idea. He blushed and looked at Bubbles, taking a few steps back.

“You uh...draw good...for a uh...” Butch scratched his head and swallowed hard. He thrust his mitt out, still nervous, “F-For a sissified weenie wimp!” Butch turned darker when Bubbles started laughing. He took a nervous step back, glancing at the other occupants of the classroom. Buttercup and Blossom were keeping an eye on him, but were mostly helping Ms. Keane clean up. He turned back to Bubbles who gave him a charming smile. Butch twitched, his head jerking to the side.

“Thanks! I worked really hard on it!” Butch sputtered and quickly stumbled back toward the door. He looked at the others then stuck his tongue out at Bubbles and flew out the door frantically. Bubbles giggled and joined her sisters and teacher, all of whom were heading out to the car.

“That was weird...what was his problem?” Buttercup asked, glancing at Bubbles. The blue puff shrugged, smiling brightly.

“He's not so bad when Brick isn't around!” Buttercup stuck her tongue out, but didn't comment. Without further discussion, the four piled into the car and made their way home.

XxXxX

The moment she got home, Blossom flew up the stairs and hid in the bedroom. She closed the door tightly, breathing heavily. As soon as she turned around she jumped. Blossom held her chest, trying to will her frantic heart to slow down. Sitting on the bed staring at her, wearing his same stupid look, was Bubbles' favorite doll, Octi. Blossom sighed and scratched her head. She shuffled from foot to foot, blushing.

“This is so stupid...um...don't tell anyone, okay, Octi?” Blossom rolled her eyes, knowing it was ridiculous. She quickly shed her dress and rushed to the bathroom. The shadows in the room shifted around, a dark figure appearing next to the bed. Aku snatched the doll from the bed, holding it up and staring at it.

“She spoke to this toy, as if it were alive...for what reason?” Aku frowned and threw the doll back down on the bed. He glanced at the door; he could hear someone approaching. He faded back into the shadows, disappearing. The door flew open and Bubbles hovered in.

“Blossom? Are you in here?” Bubbles paused at the bathroom door. She started to lean closer then paused.

“Um...I'm in here Bubbles,” Bubbles blushed and giggled nervously. She hovered backward.

“Oh sorry! Okay, we were just wondering where you ran off to!” Bubbles flew back to the bed. She gasped in girlish delight and scooped her favorite toy into her arms. Octi's blank stare was locked on the bathroom door. Bubbles giggled and held him out.

“Hello Octi! I missed you so much, yes I did! Let's go play downstairs! Blossom! Ms. Keane wanted to know what you wanted for supper!” Bubbles called, floating back toward the door. She paused again, hearing the frantic shuffling behind the door.

“Um...whatever is okay with me,” Bubbles beamed and nodded.

“Okay!” Bubbles flew out of the room, closing the door behind her. In the bathroom, Blossom sighed and finished changing. She sighed and sat against the bathroom door, pulling her knees up to her chest. She gently rubbed her chest, and looked up at the ceiling. She sighed and got back to her feet. If she took too long, her sisters would worry. Blossom yawned and washed her hands, leaving the bathroom. She paused in the bedroom, noticing her backpack laying against the wall.

'Who is my Special Person?' Blossom sighed and gently rubbed her cheek, blushing and smiling. She hurried out of the room, closing the door behind her. Aku reemerged from the darkness, stroking his beard. She had stared so...longingly at her sack. Aku snatched the bag and sat back down on the girls' bed. He unzipped the sack and removed her notebook.

“What is this? All day the Red Child has observed this tablet...” Aku opened the notebook, turning until he found a page with a single line written on it. Who is my Special Person? Aku narrowed his eyes, his free hand clutching his chest.

“Special Person? She has spent all this time dwelling on a single question? What does this mean?” Aku had noticed that she kept touching her cheek. And while Boomer had failed to hear what she had said in her sleep earlier, Aku had heard. Aku set the notebook down, still clutching his chest. His eyebrows had dulled to a subtle flicker.

“She spoke my name...” Aku frowned and closed the notebook. He slid it back into the backpack, which he replaced next to the door. As the Shogun of Sorrow rose to his feet, he once more looked down at the bed. He narrowed his eyes and faded into the darkness, returning to his silent pursuit of the Red Child. The Lord of Darkness felt uneasy, despite his stealth and power. For a moment he could have sworn he saw that strange octopus doll.