Dreams of an Absolution

"Have you ever been in love?

He's my best friend, best of all best friends

Do you have a best friend too?

It tickles in my tummy, he's so yummy yummy!

Hey, you should get a best friend too!"

Best Friend (Toy-Box "FanTastic")


Dreams of an Absolution

Chapter 8

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, even nicer now that she was out of Dr. Elise's office. She was so excited, Blossom couldn't help the spring in her step. The sun was shining, there was a comfortable breeze blowing across the city, and best of all, she had the entire day to herself. Blossom took a deep breath and sighed happily, plopping down on a stoop and staring up at the sky.

Normally, the Professor drove her to and from her meetings with Dr. Elise. Today, however, he was swarmed with work, so Blossom had opted to simply fly herself there and back again. Overprotective parent that he was, the Professor still relented. Blossom grinned and stretched, yawning.

"It's such a great day...I wonder what I should do? Oh! I bet I can finish my book today!" Blossom's grin was so great, it was almost painful. She leapt to her feet and jogged blissfully down the sidewalk. There was no real hurry...but the prospect of curling up in the hammock in the backyard with a nice big book was just too exhilarating to let her dillydally. As she raced down the sidewalk, ducking and dodging around the few people who didn't jump out of her way, Blossom could feel eyes watching her.

The Powerpuff girl narrowed her eyes and slowed to a walk. Taking a deep breath, she swung around! The sidewalk behind her was empty. Blossom crossed her arms; someone was definitely watching her. Blossom whipped around again! Again, she was greeted by emptiness. Blossom swallowed and took a step back. She froze, hearing soft footsteps just behind her. Blossom clenched her fists, forcing her power to the pathetic limit her bracelets allowed...and whipped around!
"What the..." Blossom blinked and stared down at the cute little black cat staring up at her. She cocked her head to the side, slowly raising her eyebrow. The kitty's eyebrows were on fire, and his face was sickly green.

"Aku? Is that you?" Blossom knelt down as the black cat sauntered up to her, grinning from pointy ear to pointy ear.

"How very observant of you, child! Yes, it is I, the great and powerful, Aku!" Blossom's cheeks heated up, her chest fluttered. A goofy, wiggly grin spread across her face. Aku blinked and took a step back.

"Aww! You're the cutest kitty ever!" Blossom scooped Aku into her arms and hugged him tight, stroking his silky black fur. Aku's tongue hung out his mouth and purred wildly, stretching his long legs out. Blossom giggled when Aku suddenly tensed and pulled away from her.

"Desist from such humiliation, Blossom! I may have taken this form, but I am still deserving of respect!" Blossom giggled, blushing bright pink. Against Aku's better wishes, she couldn't resist petting him again.

"So what should I call you, sweet little kitty, kitty?" Aku purred again, arching his back. He blinked and growled, pulling away from Blossom and sauntering a few steps away. Blossom giggled again, sitting down, curling her legs beneath her, while she watched him prowl.

"Ah yes! What is in a name? Feast your eyes upon the glory and MAJESTY of the almighty...Neku-sama!" Aku grinned, his eyebrows flickering. Blossom's cheeks heated up more and she collapsed in a fit of giggles. Neku-sama narrowed his eyes and strutted over to her, hopping on her chest and glaring her right in the eye.

"You find Neku-sama funny, child?" Blossom shook her head, laughing out loud as she hugged him again. This time, Neku-sama nuzzled her back.

"Of course not! You're so adorable...little Neku-chan!" Aku yowled and tore away from her, snarling and glaring at her, his cheeks turning bright red as she laughed louder.

"It is Neku-sama! Neku-sama! I am not some precious baby creature for you to coddle!" Blossom sat up, smothering her laughter and petting Neku-chan's head again.

"Okay, okay, I won't patronize you...Neku-chan," She snickered; Neku-chan merely glared at her. Much as she wanted to continue tormenting the cute little cat, Blossom climbed to her feet and strolled off down the sidewalk, Neku-chan right on her heels.

"Who was this woman you met with?" Blossom folded her hands behind her back, looking down at Neku-chan.

"That was Doctor Irena Elise, she's my...um...my therapist..." Her voice trailed off; Neku-chan narrowed his eyes and snorted.

"A doctor? Why do you need a doctor, child? Surely there is nothing wrong with you," Blossom sighed and tilted her head back and forth. The sky was a silky blue, bright, cloudless and so inviting. She sighed again, staying earthbound.

"She's a therapist...I um...after you disappeared, it's...well her job is; I mean, the Professor thinks," Blossom huffed and came to a sudden stop, hands on her hips. Neku-chan raised a fiery eyebrow and glanced up at her. Uncomfortable as she was, his expression was too adorable to not grin.

"She's supposed to help me deal with the issues...that caused me to...work for you," Neku-chan blinked. Blossom sighed and plopped down next to him, resting her chin in her hands.

"It's really not that bad, I've enjoyed talking to her. She doesn't judge me like everyone else...she seems like she actually cares," Neku-chan growled, protectively rubbing against her leg.

"She, like they, assumes that there is something wrong with you," Blossom nodded and stroked his fur. It was a strange and slick, more like vinyl than fur really.

"Well, yeah but I can't really tell anyone that. If I did, they'd be gunning for me again," She noticed his confused expression and corrected herself, "The angrier citizens wanted me to be executed for my crimes against humanity," Neku-chan snorted and laid down, yawning.

"As if they had the power to accomplish such a task," Blossom smiled and laid back. Their wandering had led them by the park. She must have gotten side-tracked while talking, they were no where near the Pokey Oaks suburbs. Blossom yawned and closed her eyes. She felt Neku-chan curl up closer to her and smiled.

They laid like that for God only knew how long. The day rolled by slowly, a warm gentle breeze dancing along the fresh cut grass of the restored Townsville Central Park. Children screamed and laughed in the distance-thankfully far enough away-dogs barked and parents chattered eagerly. At some point, Neku-chan climbed onto Blossom's chest; the little girl happily snuggled him closer. Even in this form, he still smelled sweetly of fire and ash; his fur was impossibly warm, his purrs were deep, like the Earth snoring. Blossom took a slow, deep breath and let out a big, content sigh, closing her eyes.

XxXxX

"Child?" Blossom groaned and rubbed her eyes, slowly sitting up. She yawned and looked down at the black cat sitting in her lap.

"Neku-chan? What time is it?" Neku-chan glowered, scampering off her lap.

"It is nearing mid-afternoon, you dozed off, Blossom," Blossom nodded and climbed to her feet, brushing off her bottom and stretching, "So what shall we do now, child? There is still much time left before you are required to return home," Blossom froze, eyes now wide open. What was there to do? She still wanted to read her book, but...that wouldn't be fun for Aku, would it? She definitely wanted to spend more time with him, that was for sure. Blossom lowered her arms and fixed her stare on the grass, avoiding Neku-chan's gleaming eyes. What did people do with the people they really liked? What did...boyfriends and girlfriends do?

"Um...we c-could..." An image flashed in her head; she felt sick at her stomach, but at the same time...it was true, right? "Go to...the mall...yeah! We could um...go walk around the mall, or something..." Blossom turned to Neku-chan, only to find Uka-sensei standing over her, hands shoved in his dark pockets. Blossom's face turned red as a tomato, she could almost feel the steam pouring off her cheeks as she quickly looked at the grass once more.

"The mall...this is some kind of...establishment for social gathering?" Blossom pushed her hair away from her face and bit her lip. She honestly didn't understand the fascination with the mall herself, but past experience definitely showed that it was where couples hung out...

"Um...yeah! It's something like a collection of stores but yeah! People go there to hang out all the time!" Uka-sensei stroked his beard. The way he looked at her...it was like she was the authority on anything relating to modern times. She blushed brighter and looked down once again.

"Very well, let's go, Blossom," Blossom nodded and led him back through the city. Uka-sensei stayed quiet, walking just a few steps behind her. It was nearing rush hour, she was afraid they'd have to push their way through the crowds. Much to her surprise-she grinned despite herself-the people moved to make way as she and Uka-sensei crossed the sidewalk. She couldn't tell if it was fear of Uka-sensei...but she knew for a fact it was for fear of her.

"So um...here it is!" Blossom and Uka-sensei stopped just outside the mall, staring up at it-the former in awe, the latter dumbstruck. Uka-sensei started toward the mall, catching the flabbergasted Powerpuff girl by the hand and leading her inside. The moment his fingers closed around her mitt, Blossom's entire body heated up, she gasped and a euphoric sensation shot through her heart. Blossom stifled a squeal and hurried after him, standing bashfully close while they entered.

"Impressive...the way the humans stalk this place...worshiping idols of the heart, giving in to lust and desire! This is..." Uka-sensei stopped and grinned, glaring around the crowd. Blossom only vaguely noticed, she was giddy beyond expression. She tightened her grasp on his hand and looked up. The look on Uka-sensei's face was predatory.

"Incredible! Mere mortals have created this world of greed and envy! Look around you, child, bask in the sinful decadence of it all-" Uka-sensei stopped short, sniffing the air. He looked around, spotting the food court near the entrance. Without a word, Blossom hurried toward it, dragging Uka-sensei, who was trying to maintain something resembling dignity.

"Have you had any junk food before? You should try some, it's horrible for you but it usually tastes pretty good!" The pair strolled through the selection, eying the plethora of greasy, heart-clogging food items.

"What is this?" Uka-sensei stopped, eying a hot dog vendor with a raised eyebrow. Blossom stood on her tiptoes to get a better look. She giggled and hovered into the air.

"It's a hot dog, Uka-sensei...you've never had one?" Uka-sensei crossed his arms and glared at the man behind the counter. He swallowed nervously and tried to offer a friendly smile. Uka-sensei glanced at Blossom then back at the vendor.

"You will give us two of these 'hot dogs'," The vendor nodded, now sweating nervously. His gaze kept drifting back and forth between Blossom and Uka-sensei. She couldn't tell which one of the pair made him more nervous.

"Th-That's uh um...it's uh...w-well f-for you h-how ab-about it's uh...on the h-house..?" Uka-sensei snatched the hot dogs, handing one to Blossom. While she sprayed a thin line of ketchup on hers, she stared at Uka-sensei, who was watching curiously. Blossom spread some ketchup on Uka-sensei's hot dog, then chomped into hers as the pair walked away. She peered up at her teacher, watching him take his first bite...eating the entire hot dog in one mouthful. Uka-sensei blinked and swallowed slowly, putting his hands in his pockets.

"So um...did you like it?" She asked. In the time it took her to blink, Uka-sensei was gone. Blossom looked around wildly, spotting Uka-sensei practically throttling the hot dog vendor. Blossom nearly choked on her hot dog, smothering her laughter. Uka-sensei came back to her, already on his fourth hot dog. As he walked by, Blossom took a risk and grabbed his hand. Uka-sensei had no objections, and once again the two were strolling hand in hand through a sea of frightened expressions and nervous twitches.

"So, you liked it?" Blossom asked as she finally finished hers. Uka-sensei stared at his now empty hand in disappointment. Sighing, the Master of Masters turned to Blossom with an odd glazed look in his eyes.

"Child...never before in all my years have I come across something as vile and deadly as this...this hot dog!" He sighed, licking his lips and staring greedily back at the food court, "And yet, that first glorious bite...surely, this is mankind's greatest creation since my first death," Blossom was hovering in the air next to him, doubled over with laughter. When she caught sight of the wistful expression on Uka-sensei's face, she cracked up yet again. Uka-sensei sighed and slouched miserably.

"You could always just...make your own, you know?" Uka-sensei stood up straight.

"What? The ingredients to prepare the most delicious of all this world's foods is readily available? Why did you not say so sooner?!" Blossom scratched her head sheepishly.

"Sorry, I guess I forgot that you still don't know very much about modern times," Uka-sensei smiled as the two returned to their stroll. He tightened his grip on her hand.

"You shall have to teach me more...Blossom," Blossom grinned and her inside squirmed exquisitely. She turned to Uka-sensei, but stopped and jerked her hand away from him, spying someone fast approaching them.

"Excuse me! Yes, excuse me," Uka-sensei raised an eyebrow and turned to the newcomer. Blossom spotted her classmate, Molly Beware, straggling along behind with her father. Her mother was toe to toe with Uka-sensei, who seemed largely unimpressed with the admittedly well-dressed woman now glaring at him.

"Yes, you're Mr. Uka, correct? I'm sorry to bother you, but my daughter is in your class," Uka-sensei glanced at Molly, who looked like she'd give anything to just crawl into a hole and disappear, and then glanced at her father, who was wearing a similar expression.

"Yes...Molly Beware, she is one of my pupils," Mrs. Beware straightened up, sparing at glare toward Blossom. She managed to smile halfheartedly-it took all of her will-power to force away a momentary snarl-before turning to Molly. Molly stared hard at her, torn between anger and confusion. Blossom just offered yet another half-smile and shrugged.

"Mr. Uka, I'm sorry to confront you like this, but...is it true that you threw a book at my daughter?" Molly turned three shades of red and Uka-sensei stroked his beard, grinning wickedly.

"I may have...I must admit, I wasn't aiming," Mrs. Beware gasped; her daughter and husband both flinched.

"You...I am going to report you to the school board!" Uka-sensei waved his hand, and shoved both hands in his pockets.

"I have already spoken with Principal Derry regarding the way I run my classroom. Your opinion does not matter to Uka...human," That was the nail on the head. The entire Beware family stared in horror as Uka-sensei sauntered off. He paused for a moment, turning to Blossom.

"Are you coming? Come, I have been eying those frozen beverages, they look most enjoyable," Blossom hurried by the Bewares, keeping her eyes down. She just prayed they didn't see her laughing.