Dreams of an Absolution

"Would you catch me if I was falling?

Would you kiss me if I was leaving?

Would you hold me cause I'm lonely,

Without you...

And I can't see nothing, nothing...around here"

Round Here (Counting Crows "Across the Wire")


Dreams of an Absolution

Chapter 1

XxXxX

The clock ticked meticulously on the wall, pale white face staring across the plain white room. A little girl, her long red hair down and laying in waves around her, sat on a pink quilted bed, the only break in the white monotony of the small corner room. She poured over a book far too large for her age, filled with complex words and ideas that even someone thrice her age would be troubled to understand. As she read, she clutched a tiny black doll, burying her face in its black bow and soft orange hair. In any other situation, it would have been an adorable little scene. That is, until the casual onlooker took a closer look at her hot pink eyes. They stared blankly at the book, not really reading, not really focused on anything at all. She broke her trance when a harsh knock banged against the door.

"It's unlocked, Buttercup! Just come in!" Blossom quickly stuffed her doll underneath her pillow, just as her black-haired sister hovered in, arms crossed and an irate look on her face. The two traded glares for a moment; the intensity was finally broken when the redhead crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow.

"What do you want, Buttercup? I'm really busy right now," Buttercup rolled her eyes and looked away, assuming a near identical look of distaste. Blossom frowned, knowing that her sister-recently at least-only barged into her room for one reason.

"We just got a call, the supermarket was robbed," Blossom nodded and quickly marked her place in the book, following Buttercup through the halls to the ground floor. The third member of their trio, the blonde-haired Bubbles, was waiting for them. She quickly flew up to fill the empty space on Buttercup's right. Without further hesitation, the Powerpuff Girls were off on the case.

XxXxX

When they arrived, the police force was already combing the recently reestablished supermarket. Blossom looked around, amazed at how quickly Townsville had recovered. Not more than two months ago, it was little more than a crater. She turned back and caught sight of the police chief's eye. She flinched away, staring down at her black shoes. The rest of the country-the rest of the world even-wasn't fairing nearly as well. They weren't quite as accustomed to utter catastrophe, she thought with a tiny smile. Blossom felt hard eyes staring at her, and quickly forced her smile away; looking up, she put on her game face.

"What's the trouble, Chief?" The Chief sighed and stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking around the trashed supermarket entrance. It was an absolute mess, the kind the city hadn't seen in a while. Produce flung every which way, canned foods slit open and poured out. The goop mixed and mingled with the endless variety of beverages which had been unceremoniously spread across the once polished floor.

"Well, that much is obvious, someone broke in, trashed the place up, and stole all the money from the registers," Blossom nodded, turning to look at the various employees who were being questioned. The supermarket had been one of the first facilities rebuilt, and as such had been practically fighting off job applications for the first few weeks. Thankfully, generous parties from other towns had offered to help Townsville. Afterall, the city had suffered greater damage than anywhere else in the world. Were it not for the city's usual pattern of destruction and various defensive measures...rebuilding wouldn't even be an option.

"Right, sorry I asked. Um...so uh...are there any clues?" The chief smiled and nodded, leading the girls to the manager, who looked absolutely stricken. They immediately recognized him as the curator of the still under-construction Townsville Museum. The poor limp-wristed man was nearly bald, and looked at them with tears in his eyes.

"Oh girls! Girls you've finally arrived! Oh I don't know what I'd do without you two! Oh please, you have to help me! My poor store has just been ruined!" He grabbed Bubbles' collar, sobbing into her baby blue dress. Bubbles blinked and looked at her sister, who groaned and slapped her forehead.

"Mr. Manager, settle down! Just tell us what you know!" Blossom crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow as the manager flew into a rapid fire detail of the security tapes. Apparently around midnight a group of thugs slipped into the supermarket, dressed in black, and stole several pounds of food. Stranger still, the cameras all went out simultaneously. Someone had shorted the control panel, well after the store had been robbed.

"Huh...that's strange...why do you think it just went out?" Bubbles asked, looking from the manager, to the chief, to her sister. Blossom put her mitt to her chin, deep in thought. There were so many questions that still needed to be answered. If they could just see the tape.

"That's it? Man, I thought you'd have more to go on," The manager sighed and looked at the Powerpuff leader. He bit his lip and wiped his watery eyes.

"I'm so sorry! I've tried to find something else, but there's nothing! All of the videos end in the same place!" Blossom looked down at her wrist and glared, rubbing it in frustration. There had to be more, they just needed to see the video. Common crooks to supervillains...they all left behind clues, they all made mistakes. It was in their nature, they were only human.

"Can we see-" Blossom started, finally speaking after remaining in silence for the greater part of the exchange. Buttercup quickly cut her off.

"Well maybe we can look for clues! I bet we can find stuff the cops missed!" The chief nodded, and left as the two Powerpuff girls flew off to scour the area. Blossom glowered at the retreating streak of green light. She smiled and looked back at the manager. The wiry older man squeaked and took a step back. Swallowing nervously, he rushed off to the safety of the police line. Blossom put her hands on her hips and took a slow deep breath.

'1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10,' She kept her eyes closed, holding her breath, ignoring the sounds around her. The hustle and bustle of investigation faded away, even the chipper zig-zagging of her sisters flying through the air.

'1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10,' Blossom slowly exhaled, keeping her eyes shut. Her mind focused in on the manager's description of the video. If they could just see it, just once.

'1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10," She opened her eyes and forced a smile, quickly flying off to join her sisters' hunt. Maybe, with any luck, they'd actually would find something.

XxXxX

"How did it go, girls?" The Powerpuff Girls, irate and defeated, floated in through the front door of their suburban home. Their father, Professor Utonium, stepped out of the kitchen dressed in a pink apron and yellow rubber gloves. The one who had spoken to them, Ms. Cassandra Keane, smiled from the table where she sat sipping a cup of coffee. The girls took their usual seats at the table and Blossom watched Bubbles struggle to quietly scoot her seat closer to Buttercup. Rolling her eyes, Buttercup simply tugged the seat closer before returning to her sour mood.

"It was a bust! We couldn't find any clues at all...the mess covered up everything!" Ms. Keane sighed and looked around at them, smiling encouragingly.

"Well you are very bright girls, and we have a great police force! I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out," Bubbles smiled brightly and Buttercup grinned begrudgingly.

"Yeah, Buttercup, we can go back later and see if the police have found anything!" Bubbles suggested.

"That's a great idea Bubbles! Let's eat lunch, then we'll go back and-" Blossom closed her eyes, tempted to try counting again. She wanted to avoid a confrontation but...

"If you hadn't interrupted me before, I think we could have figured out who was behind this already," She finally said, breaking the warm air like a hammer through glass. Buttercup whipped around instantly, her eyes narrowed into slits. All movement in the kitchen stopped, even the water dripping from the sink faucet.

"You're saying I'm too stupid to be the leader, aren't you?! You don't think I can do it, do you?" Blossom frowned and crossed her arms.

"That wasn't what I said at all! I simply said that I had an idea that could have helped solve this mystery!" Buttercup clenched her fists at her sides. She thrust an accusatory mitt at Blossom, who flinched back slightly.

"You do this every time we get a call! You don't think I'm smart enough! I don't need your help!" Blossom gasped indignantly and stood up in her chair, her cheeks getting red.

"Stop putting words in my mouth! Part of being a leader is listening to your team! If it was me and you had an idea-" Buttercup jumped up on her chair, cheeks red as well.

"Well it's not you anymore! Let me figure this out instead of trying to backseat lead! You're lucky to even be a Powerpuff Girl now!" Blossom narrowed her eyes, her hands dropping limp at her sides. Her lip trembled, but she kept her glare unblinking.

"This isn't about that! This is about a robbery that has a tremendous impact on the citizens of Townsville! Stop being so selfish!" Buttercup retorted without a moment's hesitation, her words cutting Blossom like a knife.

"I'm selfish?! You're the one who tried to blow up the world! This is all your fault!" Blossom swallowed; the sensation was like trying to ingest glass and nails. The Professor pulled off his gloves, stepping between them.

"That is enough! You two have more important things to do than fight each other...now, you should at least listen to Blossom's advice, Buttercup, she has more experience leading than you," Buttercup turned to the Professor with wide eyes. Blossom turned away, trying to ignore the betrayal in her sister's voice.

"Professor! After what she did-" The Professor cleared his throat and put a hand on Buttercup's head.

"That is neither here nor now, Buttercup. But, Blossom," He turned to his other daughter, who refused to meet his gaze. Blossom kept her eyes on the floor.

'1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10,' She thought softly, taking a deep breath.

"Blossom you should be a little more encouraging of your sister. She and you have very different leading styles, you shouldn't try to force her to do things your way. Buttercup is right...that isn't...that's not your role any more," Blossom jumped down from her seat, rubbing her wrist and ignoring both sisters. Bubbles scooted closer to the table when she walked by.

"I'm going to my room..." Blossom hovered up the stairs, forcing herself to ignore the muttering voices in the kitchen. She slammed the door to her room, tempted to lock it but knowing she'd only get in more trouble. Blossom shut the blinds on the window and threw herself down on the bed. Her heart was pounding, her blood was rushing...she felt so heavy and uncomfortable. Blossom pounded her fist on the bed and looked up. Reaching under her pillow, she pulled out her doll. A replica of herself, but with a green face and black skin. She smiled and hugged the doll close.

"You'd trust me...wouldn't you?" Blossom sniffed and laid down, rolling onto her side and staring at the wall. She nuzzled the doll, taking a deep breath. Its synthetic hair still smelled so fresh and manufactured. It was a soothing smell, or at least it had become a soothing one. She wiped her eyes and snuggled up with her doll, staring at the shadows. They remained still and lifeless...completely empty. Blossom clenched her eyes shut and hung on to that thought as she drifted into an uneasy sleep.