Operation: F. O. R. E. V. E. R.

[werekitty]

WARNING: THIS IS A WORK OF FANFICTION
THIS TRANSMISSION IS NOT TO BE TAKEN AS CANON
THE ORGINAL CHARACTERS INTRODUCED IN THIS TRANSMISSION WERE CREATED BY ITS AUTHORS, AND CAN NOT BE USED WITHOUT PERMISSION.

NOW LOADING:
KIDS NEXT DOOR OPERATION:
F.O.R.E.V.E.R.

FORMER
OPERATIVE
RELATES
EXPERIENCES
VERY
EXCITEDLY
REALLY

Writing Operatives: The Incredible Werekitty
with
The J.A.M. and Leloni Bunny (AKA lilacstarprint)

It was late afternoon the day before Gallagher Elementary let its students out for the summer. In a nice suburban house, similar to all the others on its street lived the Witherspoon family. They were a typical family of two parents and two kids. This afternoon, the mother, Amanda Witherspoon was looking for her eldest child.
“Rachel? Rachel? Gracious, half the time it seems like she's not even here,” Amanda Witherspoon uttered, striding around her living room as she looked for her eldest child. She was a slender woman, with shoulder-length blond hair, brown eyes, and an expression of disapproval seemingly holding a permanent place on her face. Her power suit was, as always, neatly pressed, and very severe. From outside came the whine of a turbine engine that the woman dismissed as a passing jet, just before her daughter finally made an appearance.
“Hi, Mom,” Rachel Witherspoon, also known as Numbuh 362 of the Kids Next Door, asked entering the house through the French doors that lead to the back yard. The weather had turned hot, early, this year and Rachel had forgone her usual orange tiger-striped over shirt for a tank-top and shorts.
“There you are. Out playing with your little friends, dear?” Amanda asked.
“Yes, I was,” Rachel replied. “Were you looking for me?”
“Yes, dear. You know your father and I have to go on a business trip, right?”
“You do?” Rachel asked, eliciting a brief eye-roll from her mother. “How long will you be gone?”
“About a week, if things go well,” Amanda replied. “Something came up, though. Your Great Aunt Ophelia's sick, and can't watch you.”
“Again?”
“She's not exactly the youngest of people, Rachel,” Amanda retorted with a frown at her daughter's impertant question. “I've tried to find another sitter, but I haven't had any luck... Your Aunt Amelia's volunteered, but... Well, she's the most irresponsible and immature person I know.”
“Why do you say she's immature? Isn't she older than you?” Rachel asked, genuinely puzzled. “I thought she had a college degree...”
“Well --- yes --- but she doesn't act like an adult should. She plays video games, likes comic books, actually OWNS several different game systems, reads the most atrocious fantasy stories... Never mind collecting those silly little dog cards,” Amanda said with a look of distaste.
“Dog cards?” Rachel asked, curiously.
“You know, the ones that all the little boys use to play some kind of silly game,” the adult uttered, sounding even more displeased with the errant Amelia.
“Oh. Yipper cards.”
“Yes. Those. I can't believe that she's still collecting those stupid cards. She's been collecting them ever since she was Mortie's age. You would think she'd grow up, and put those aside, along with the video games and comics, like a proper adult should,” Amanda said with a frown. “You're not supposed to do any of those things once you reach adulthood.”
“Yes, otherwise adults will think you like to have fun,” retorted Rachel.
“Adults have fun. It's just different from what a child would consider fun... Anyway, you'd better pack for the week,” the adult uttered with a sigh. “Thank goodness your brother's going to that summer camp... Don't know what Amelia would have done if she had to watch both of you. Probably go nuts, or let you two run around like hooligans.”
Rachel sighed, inwardly, and tried not to roll her eyes. That “summer camp” was really Morty, AKA Numbuh 363, training with his newly assigned Sector, but she wasn't about to tell her mother that. Heh, as if she'd ever notice either of them being gone. Give her the Moonbase over Earth any day or time, even if the job was very stressful.
“Well, anyway, Aunt Amelia will pick you up from school, tomorrow. We have to leave before you get up, so don't be too worried,” Amanda said, ticking off the points on her fingers. “And I hope you have a good last day, dear.”
“Okay. See you when you get back, Mom,” Rachel said, getting ready to head up to her room.
“Don't forget to pack your bag, Rachel,” Amanda added. “You want to have plenty of clean undies.”
“Right, Mom,” Rachel uttered, inwardly groaning.

-0-

The next day, the last day of school, went well for the kids at Gallagher Elementary. They tried to celebrate their last day of getting out at three. Rachel walked down the steps, flanked by Numbuh 86, and and Sector V. Leaning on the post by the exit was a most unusual looking adult. It was easy to see that she was related to Numbuh 362, because she looked like an adult version of the girl. Shoulder-length blond hair framed a face that bore an uncanny resemblance to Rachel's, as her bright brown eyes scanned the crowd.
“Well, I guess my ride's here,” Rachel said.
The woman straightened, revealing that she was wearing jeans and a--- Yipper T-shirt. This caused the Kids Next Door operatives to stop in their tracks, staring at this adult in utter disbelief.
The woman tilted her head, then looked behind her, then looked at her clothes. She turned back to them, her face a picture of puzzlement.
“What?” she asked. Six kids then casually walked on, whistling innocently. “No bugs, no giant robots or bullies coming up behind me, and no principal coming along to ask me what I thought I was doing here---” Rachel looked oddly at her for a moment, then got into the car. “Do you think it was the shirt?” Amelia asked.
“And maybe the jeans—did you just come from painting your house or something?” Rachel asked.
“Er---no---I didn't feel like dressing up. I wear formal stuff all week working at the School Board.”
“Oh. I guess my friends just thought you put on the first thing you found---or something,” Numbuh 362 said with a half shrug.
“Oh. Wonder why they thought that? It's just a Yipper shirt,” Amelia observed as she started the car. Rachel thought for a moment and then dismissed it. Maybe her aunt didn't have that much of a fashion sense---whatever that was.
It didn't take long for them to reach their destination. It was a nice enough house, if not as big as Rachel's own. It was your classic ranch style home with a nice porch, and nice landscaping.
“Well here we are,” Amelia said as they pulled into the driveway. “Welcome to chateaus Guthrie.” She reached for Rachel's bag, but the girl quickly snatched it, before she could reach the strap.
“Ri-i-i-i-ight,” Rachel uttered, getting out of the car, and starting up the sidewalk. She looked at the house, thoughtfully. It shouldn't be difficult to get out, when she needed.
“Just trying to help, kiddo,” Amelia said shrugging. “I bet your mom made you pack a lot of extra stuff.”
“More or less---but I should have everything I need, here.” The woman smiled as she followed her niece into the house.
“I'm glad we're getting to spend the week together, actually. “Gives me a chance to get to know you.”
“...ugh..,” Rachel replied, under her breath. Just her luck, Amelia noticed the look on her face.
“I hope it won't be that bad,” the woman said. “Guest room is right past the bathroom.
“Thank you,” Rachel said, walking back toward the guest room. She was a bit surprised to see game consoles in entertainment center along with the surround sound system. There were also the cartoon figurines, and a very nice crystal dragon. She was more than a little perplexed as she dropped her bag in the guest room, and went to the bathroom. Did her aunt have kids as guests, before, or did she work for the store? Maybe kids came here to test out new video games or new systems---not that the KND needed to do that. They had all the latest consoles up on the moon base.
“So,” she asked, “looking forward to summer?”
“Um---sure!” Rachel replied, from the bathroom. “I don't suppose you've got a pool, here?”
“Just one of those blue ones with the soft sides. School Board members don't get much in the way of a paycheck. There's the always the city pool,” Amelia said apologetically.
“I'll consider it,” Rachel said, trying not to sound too dejected. She could easily give her aunt the slip, and head to Sector J for a 'secret' mission.
“Though---if I get the chance to have you over, more often, I could always auction off some of my duplicate cards on the Internet. I usually prefer to save them for trades, but I haven't had much luck with trading here, lately.” Rachel pondered this reply as she exited the bathroom. She wondered if she meant Yipper cards---maybe she had some really old ones.
“Don't worry. I guess the city pool is just as wet,” 362 replied.
“Might get to see your friends, there, too,” Amelia said putting some papers on a desk with a PC. “Any plans for the afternoon? I usually have a movie and pizza night on Friday, around dinner time. I bet you've got to update your pals on your goofy aunt, though.”
“Well, Num---um---Fanny told me she needed some History notes because of a class she missed. I'd like to take them to her,” Rachel replied.
“Fanny? Red-headed girl with an Irish accent?” Amelia asked.
“Yes---you know her?”
“More like know OF her. I hear she's an exciting student to teach,” the woman replied with an impish grin.
“Where did you hear that?” Rachel asked, amused.
“The principal and several of the teachers. They're not excited about this longer school-day proposal, to tell the truth,” Amelia replied, shaking her head.
“Oh? Weren't they going to get more money for more hours?” Rachel asked.
“No. Teachers are on a salary. A fixed amount of pay, every month, for every job, and from what I've seen there is no way that the teachers can receive a pay raise.”
“That's odd...” Rachel murmured.
“What's odd?”
“Well, you'd think that adults would pay adults more for working more hours,” the girl observed.
“They don't pay ME more for working more hours, but they still keep piling 'em on. You'd be surprised how adults are willing to treat other adults, Rachel,” Amelia said, shaking her head. Rachel looked at her oddly. Didn't adults all stick together?
“They all don't stick together, even though it seems like it, most of the time,” the woman uttered, in an uncanny echo of Rachel's own thoughts. “Adults in charge of other adults are especially bad about being unfair---especially if they profit from such abuses.”
“So, we'll be facing a teacher strike if it goes through?” Rachel asked.
“Possibly. I'm opposed to the twelve-hour school day, anyway.”
“Really?” Rachel asked, amazed. “You don't think it's a good idea for kids to be in school all day long?”
“No, actually, I don't. You're not going to force kids to learn by making school a prison,” Amelia replied.
“I guess you don't like boarding schools, either?”
“Ah---no.”
“Too prison-y?”
“Oh yeah. Never mind those uniforms. Mom sent me off to one of those things, one year. Ugh. Itchy,” Amelia uttered, shuddering.
“Couldn't stand the school OR the uniforms?” asked Rachel with a slight smirk.
“Got it in one guess, kiddo. So you're going to visit Fanny, then?”
“Yes. I'll be back for dinner,” Rachel said, getting ready to go.
“Cool. Oh, wait!” Amelia said, handing Rachel a piece of paper. “That's my number, here, just in case you need to call me, here. What's your cell number? In case I need to call you.” Rachel wrote down her number, and handed it to her aunt. “Thanks. I'll see you at dinner. Er---what kind of toppings do you like on your pizza?”
“Um---any, I guess---except for garlic, anchovies, onions, or hot peppers,” Rachel replied.
“Heh. The only time I ever have garlic is in the dipping sauce they send for the crust. So, how about just plain pepperoni?”
“Sounds good.”
“Want some wings and bread sticks, too?”
“Not if they're super spicy. I get weird dreams from those.”
“Whoa. You too?” Amelia asked.
“Doesn't everyone?”
“I honestly can't say for absolutely certain,”Amelia replied. “See you later.” Rachel shrugged and left.
Numbuh 362 walked the short distance to the Fullbright residence, hoping against all hope that she would not be needed at the Moon Base. Pizza, movie, and a good night's sleep sounded especially good, today. She knocked on the door, and moments later she heard Fanny's penetrating Irish accented voice yell: “Oi'll get it!” Rachel couldn't help but chuckle a bit. The door opened, and the red-headed girl started a bit at seeing her.
“Ah! Oh. Good afternoon, sir,” Fanny said. “How's ye auntie doin'?”
“Just as eccentric as always. Do we have any reports from the Bridge, or do they need my presence up there?” Rachel asked.
“Tis strangely quiet, sir--- Ifin' ye dunea moind me askin', but wha' was up wi' that shirt, anyway?”
"My aunt's? I dunno—-I guess she got tired of wearing business suits, all week long,” Rachel replied.
“Fer real? Me Dad wears suits alla toim,” Fanny observed.
“Except at night---or so I hear.”
“Weel, yeah, but ye canna sleep in a business suit,” Fanny said, then smirked a bit. “Mum willnea let him.”
“True enough. Now the world is more or less quiet enough, today, so that I won't be bothered for the next eight hours?” Rachel asked.
“Twould nea be any emergencies tha we cannea handle, for that long, at least. Moiner stuff, Oi'll make sure tha' the sectors take care o' it , themselves, before they become major.”
“Thank you, Numbuh 86. For once, I'll be glad to have a quiet night. But if something DOES come up---well, you know where to find me,” 362 said with a relieved sigh.
“Wot's tha plan, sir?”
“The plan is: have the next shift work, normally, handle the MINOR incidents---meaning DON'T CALL ME IF SOMEONE CAN'T TIE THEIR SHOELACES---and see if things can be quiet, for me, for the night, okay?” Rachel said.
“Big plans, tonoight, sir?” Fanny asked with a slight smirk.
“Yes. They involve pizza and SLEEP.”
“Pizza? Yer aunt's orderin' pizza? Hm. She moight nea be tha bad, then, eh?”
“That---or she's too tired to cook tonight,” replied Rachel “And don't worry. Sector V isn't delivering it.”
“Thank GOODNESS! Can ye BELIE- Er- Nevermoind. R&R fer ye. Surin ye deserve it.”
“Thanks. I'll read any reports in the morning. Goodnight, 86,” Rachel said, turning to leave.
“Goodnoight, sir,” Fanny said. “Oi'll see ifin' Oi can send any reports to yew at yer Aunt's---save ye a trip, lessin' tis really urgent.”
“I have my communicator. See you later,” Rachel said as she walked back home. The pizza arrived JUST as she reached the house. Amelia was already outside paying for it.
“Dude, I've never seen you buy wings and sticks, too. Goin' all out, this Friday?” the pizza guy asked.
“No, Derick, I've got a guest,”Amelia said taking the boxes.
“Ex-cell-lent! Amelia's got a guest!” Derick said winking and nudging the woman with an elbow.
“Get your mind out of the gutter, Derick,” Amelia said sternly. “It's my NIECE.”
“Oh. Right. See ya”
“Friend of yours?” Rachel asked, almost sneering at the delivery boy.
“No. I just end up seeing him every Friday, because he seems to end up working my neighborhood, all the time,” Amelia replied.
“Did he at least get the order right?”
“Sure did. Extra large pepperoni, with terriyaki wings, and cheesy bread sticks.”
“Hey, perfect! Let's eat!” Rachel said, excitedly.
“And in honor of the occasion, you get to pick the movie,” Amelia said putting the food on the living room table. “I'll get the soda and paper towels.”
Rachel went over to the entertainment center, and examined the stack of DVD's. The collection consisted of many popular animated movies, including a couple of the later Rainbow Monkeys movies. There was also a lot of anime, their labels in Japanese. Undubbed, possibly?
“'Rainbow Monkeys and the Secret of the Spectrum'? 'Rainbow Monkeys and the Dark Hunter'?” Rachel queried, stunned at the cartoons. “These are the DIRECTOR'S editions! And--- InuYasha?”
“Hey, good choice,”Amelia said from the kitchen. “I'll have to make sure to turn on the subtitles, though.”
“Are all of these YOURS?” Rachel asked.
“Yes. Why?”
“You have time to WATCH these?”
“On weekends, usually,” Amelia replied. “Working for the county does have its occasional perks.”
“And I thought only kids watched cartoons,” Rachel uttered in disbelief. Amelia chuckled, as she came into the living room carrying a pair of glasses, a 2-liter of cherry cola, and a roll of paper towels.
“Well that is true, for the most part. They're something of a guilty pleasure, for me. Your mother tends to rib me about it, but I don't really care. If they're good, then I'll watch them,” Amelia said, setting the stuff on the table.
“You really find them interesting?”
“Sure. The InuYasha ones have a very involved plot, and the movies are all imaginative, and original. Even those two Rainbow Monkeys movies are very well done, and MUCH better than those sugar-coated ones released previously.”
“Wow---” Rachel uttered, as she sat down to eat.
“Have you SEEN some of those? Seriously cloying,” Amelia asked handing a slice on a paper towel to Rachel.
“A few of them---I didn't know you had the director's cut for some of these,” Rachel replied taking the slice.
“Well you haven't exactly been encouraged to keep in contact with me,” Amelia uttered with a shrug, as she bit into her slice.
“And my mom would disapprove of me watching these?”
“I don't know,” Amelia replied. “Do you think she would disapprove?”
“Depends on the rating.”
“Hm--- That's what I get for not getting any of the Americanized dubs,” the woman murmured, thoughtfully. Rachel wondered if Kuki liked any of the original cuts of some of these cartoons. “A lot of them are not rated. Any, in particular you want to check out?” Amelia nudged Rachel impishly. “I won't tell if you won't.”
“Fair enough...” Though she knew better than to trust an adult, and she chose an anime that seemed more or less “kiddy”.
“That's a fairly good show,” Amelia observed. “I'll still have to remember to turn on the subtitles.” Rachel kept quiet about the fact that she knew SOME Japanese courtesy of the Elusive Japanese KND. “I learned Japanese when I was kid. These help me keep it up. I think the dialog is better than the dubbed versions, anyhow. Spent a school year in japan, too, when I was a teen.”
“Did you enjoy it?” Rachel asked.
“Yes, actually. Their school year may run from April to the next march, but it has loads of festivals, field trips, and other activities that keep it from being all work.”
“IS that why you're against this new schedule? It's just not right?” Rachel asked, looking positively perplexed.
“That's right, Rachel, it's not right at all, in my opinion,” Amelia replied.
“Well, I'm glad SOME adults think so...”
“I just wish Mr. Menacing in his black suit wasn't on the board,” Amelia uttered frowning.
“Can't you just vote him off?”
“I've tried, unsuccessfully. I'd have thought that the tie debacle would have done it, but alas no.”
“You opposed TIES too?”
“Well YEAH! A kid should have a choice about what they wear. And I was more than a little suspicious, when that Father guy offered to PROVIDE the ties.”
“That was weird,” Rachel said, not wanting to reveal she knew EXACTLY where the ties had come from.
“What was WIERDER was the ties all, one day, shrieking and falling off the boys' necks,” Amelia asserted.
“Uhm---yeah---I wonder what THAT was all about...”
“Father didn't have an explanation for it, I know that for sure,” Amelia uttered.
“I wonder why,” Rachel mused.
“Because those weren't normal ties,and it was another one of his plans to rob kids of their rights.”
“Do you know if this new schedule is going to force us to wear uniforms?” Rachel asked.
“No, it's not. And if I have my way there won't be a new schedule.”
“Wow... Well, thanks, Aunt Amelia.”
“All I can promise is that I'll give it my best try to keep it from passing, kiddo.”
“And hope for the best,” Rachel added.
“Yeah. That too,” the woman said nodding. The conversation obviously over, for now, they both sat back to eat, and watch the movie.

-0-

"Well yeah, we ate pizza and watched old movies. Then she bested me in a free-for-all pillow fight that came after. Well yeah, but I drank more of it, than she did. It was FUN, sis. We both had a blast, and tired each other out, which was a good thing. Usually I'm up sugar buzzing until about 4 A. M. otherwise," Amelia said into the receiver. "And yes, Rachel went to bed at a decent hour. Uhm---midnight. A-MAN-da! It's a weekend, for cryin' out loud. Yes, she's still in bed. Yes she's sleeping. What part of 'weekend' aren't you getting? It's Saturday. No, the cartoons I'm taping are for ME. You know that. Why not? Ri-i-i-ight, Amanda. I'm sure. I KNOW for a FACT that you watched the early incarnation of that Rainbow Monkeys cartoon. Ancient history? Maybe, but history is history. You kept up with the canon until..." she sighed, "...you finished elementary. Yes, we're going to have a nutritious breakfast without sugar." It was all Amelia could do to keep from giggling. "And skim milk. No, we wouldn't want Rachel to put on love handles."
Just then Rachel came in, yawning and rubbing her eyes. She looked at Amelia talking on the phone for a second, and went over to the cabinet, quickly finding the Rainbow Munchies.
"Yup, nothing but health food here. I know how concerned you are about that.” This time it was all RACHEL could do to keep from laughing. "Yes, I'll send her your love. Goodbye, Amanda. Have a good trip.”
"Some adults can't seem to remember the wonderful taste of white sugar," said Rachel, wolfing down her breakfast.
“Sad, ain't it?” Amelia asked, pouring her own bowl of Rainbow Munchies.
"Well, it's what keeps ME going,” Rachel asserted.
"She's gotten kind of uptight since we were kids," Amelia said as she munched her cereal. "She was always something of a neat freak, and an over-achiever, but honestly..."
"I don't know how I would be able to handle her if it weren't for-------um----my friends," Rachel said, catching herself.
"I hear you, kiddo. Even though we're twins, she was always the one who got the most attention. If I didn't have MY friends, back then... My school days probably would have been a lot worse."
"She's never going to come around, is she?" Rachel asked a bit morosely.
Amelia shrugged, helplessly. "I wish I knew. Don't doubt she loves you, though. She's---just a little---overprotective."
...she'd probably chain me in the basement if she knew what I was up to...Rachel thought. "It's--nothing I can't handle, I suppose. I'm glad I have my friends."
"Hope I'm counted among your friends, Kiddo. I'm an aunt, relatively speaking, but still---"
"You're still being a kid, in some ways?"
"I'm still a kid at heart, I think you mean."
"My mom says that's why you haven't married yet. She says that seems to drive guys away."
“It could be, also, that I just haven't found the right man for me,” Amelia said with a roll of her eyes. “Not that I've had much in the way of time to actually check out the dating scene. Yeash. As if being my sister gives her a right to poke her nose into my personal life...”

(Understand that this is still a work in progress.)

[numberunknown]

WOW!!!!! LOVE IT!!!!!!!

[werekitty]

And it hasn't even gotten to the good bit.

[lilacstarprint]

Hmm, this looks pretty good so far, Kitty. Rachael's aunt's name sounds perfect for her; "Amelia" a free spirit.
Finally, someone writes a good story showing that adults can still like kid stuff and not be morons or crazies. Good work. Keep it coming.

[werekitty]

Still writing it, Lel. You'd be surprised at how many chat logs this thing takes up.

ALSO we're going to find out something amazing about Amelia.

[aims]

sweet story, you must keep going on with it.

dont you just love family who can relateto cartoons and kids stuff? my ma's just like that, lol

[werekitty]

"Have you told her about it? If what she says really bothers you...and if you're an adult...you can speak up, right?"
Amelia smiled at her niece. "You know what would really help, kiddo?"
"What?"
"If your mom would actually LISTEN to me, every now and again."
"Weren't you the older twin?”
"Have you known your mother to ever listen to somebody when they disagree with her?"
Rachel frowned, "Guess not."
"She's funny that way," Amelia observed.
"Sometimes I wonder how dad tolerates her," Rachel uttered with a sigh.
"I wonder how she found your dad in the first place..."
"I'm not too sure myself. I don't think I've heard the whole story ever."
"Oh well. I've got to go pick up some records from City Hall. Want to come with, or would you rather hang, here, and catch the toons?"
"I'll stay here," Rachel replied rather quickly. "Maybe I can reheat some of that pizza."
"I shouldn't be that long," Amelia laughed, as she drank her cereal milk.
"I'll be here, maybe soaking in that pool you mentioned,"362 added.
"Groovy,” Amelia said, putting her bowl into the sink. Rachel simply continued eating her breakfast. "See you later, kiddo. If you need to go anywhere, take your phone, and leave me a note, okay?"
"Sure, sure."
"Love ya, kiddo," Amelia said, as she headed out the door.

-0-

About fifteen minutes later, Rachel was filling the pool, and was thinking of adding another hose, when her communicator rang. Not her cell phone, but her communicator, and the ring tone was one she dreaded: Code 1 Emergency. With a huge sigh, Rachel turned off the hose, and answered her communicator. "This is Numbuh 362. What is the nature of the emergency?"
"Numbuh 362!! We need ye herre NOW!" Numbuh 86's voice had that annoying shrillness to it, when she was agitated. "Th'seconderry mainfrrame jus' blew a foose!! All th'2x4 specialists arr rrebootin' th'thing, but we need yer access codes t'bring it on line and make surre therr arr nay corrrupted foiles!!!"
"I'll be up there as soon as I can," Rachel said, alarmed. "Try to keep things calm, up there."
"Don't worry, Commenderr, Ah'll keep these BOYS in loine!!! Numbuh 86 out!"
Rachel couldn't help but chuckle, as she closed the link. Typical Fanny. The first thing she realized was that she didn't have her personal rocket here, and the nearest one was at her house. She huffed in frustration, as she went inside, trying to figure out a plausible excuse for her to go back home. Finally, she wrote a note, "Dear Aunt Amelia, Fanny called and told me she needed to borrow a movie I have at my house. I'll be back later, so don't worry about me. Bye."
With that she shut up her Aunt's place, and ran toward her house. Moments later, a rocket shot through the garage and blasted toward the moon.

-0-

It was mid afternoon when Amelia returned home. She saw the pool, apparently half filled, out back, but no Rachel. She was briefly worried, but quickly found Rachel's note when she went inside.
“Fanny needed a video?” Amelia mused, as she set the files she retrieved from her office on her desk. “Must have been important.” The woman then proceeded to get out ingredients for dinner, putting some chicken into a marinaid to help the flavor. She wondered, briefly, if Rachel liked pasta Alfredo, and if they should invite Fanny to next Friday's pizza night. Might be fun. Amelia then checked the time, realizing that Rachel had been gone far longer than it would take to deliver a video.
Amelia put the chicken into the fridge, and went out her back door. It was only about a block to the Fullbright residence, and the woman's long legs covered the distance quickly. She knocked on the sliding glass door, hoping that Mr. Fullbright was not home from work, just yet. That man never seemed to take a day off, and some days that was a GOOD thing. And just her luck, he wasn't home this Saturday. Even so, Amelia was still a bit taken off guard seeing the pleasingly plump red-haired woman at the door.
“Uh... Hi? I'm Amelia Guthrie, Rachel's aunt... You haven't by any chance seen her around, have you?”
"Rachel...that's one of Fanny's friends, right?"
“Uh... Yes, ma'am. Rachel Witherspoon. She looks kind of like a much shorter version of me, actually,” Amelia replied.
"Weel, Fanny was here this mornin', but Ah haven't seen i-ther lassie since."
“Huh. I wonder where she could be... Thank you, Mrs. Fullbright. I guess I'll check at my sister's house.”
"Have a good doy, thank ye!"
“Nice to have met you, ma'am,” Amelia said, turning toward the Witherspoon residence, and running the rest of the way. Mrs. Fullbright shrugged. Her daughter was never the sort to get into trouble, or maybe it was because she seemed so busy lately....
Amelia reached Amanda's home, this time panting from her run. She had tried to get here as fast as she could, while still looking for Rachel. She did not spot the girl anywhere near her home, or in the yard. The woman was becoming seriously worried, because while this was a quiet neighborhood, there were still predatory types that would not hesitate to kidnap a lone young girl. Even though Rachel looked like the type who could defend herself from zombies and fire-shooting guys, she couldn't help but worry... Amelia then wondered where the idea of Rachel fighting zombies and guys with flame powers had come from in the first place. Oh well.
The house was locked, both doors, and there was no sound inside. Maybe if she called the house someone would answer... Even though there was no lights on, anywhere inside. Amelia pulled out her cell phone, and dialed the number. Ringing, from the cell and from inside. No answer, though. Amelia then began to look for signs of a struggle, ANYTHING that would lead her to her niece. The woman tripped in her frantic search, nearly falling on her face. If she had not grabbed the railing around the back porch, she would have fell. Wait... What was that 'click'? Amelia staggered away from the porch, and stood there for a second, when the ground beneath her feet just---opened up.
The woman yelped as she slid down a chute made of corrugated pipe, then landed with a thud in a long, thin cylinder. A door slid, suddenly, into place, trapping the woman inside. Next thing she knew the whole thing was rumbling, and vibrating like crazy. It felt like she was going at a high speed, but she did not know how it was happening, or where she would end up.

-0-

It felt like the object had finally come to a stop. Amelia had no idea how long she had been stuck inside, but she was more than ready to be freed. It had become quite claustrophobic inside that thing. She wasn't prepared for the door just OPENING like that, however. The woman ended up falling to the ground, hard. She levered herself onto hands and knees, then looked up to find herself in... some kind of hangar?
“Okaaaaay... This is strange,” Amelia observed. The hangar was empty, save for other.....things she could only identify as campers, trailers, and even school buses with rocket boosters attached to them. And then, she froze. Painted sloppily on every single one of them: Three letters.
K.
N.
D.
"Oh shizzle," she uttered.
Then, a computerized voice came on the apparent PA, "System reboot in progress--password accepted."
"Analyzing files-----------files okay."
"Restarting defense system, shields, and sensors....." Suddenly red lights came on everywhere. "Adult alert. Adult alert..."
"Great. NOW what do I do?" Amelia asked, cringing from the alarms. They were especially loud in the hangar. Suddenly, the alarms shut off.
Meanwhile, up at the bridge.....
"Numbuh 73.325, I think that the sensors still need recalibrating. I don' t know why the computer detected an adult in here,” Numbuh 362 stated with a frown.
"Got it, sir," 73.325 said, saluting smartly. The nerd kid, twisted a few knobs, and stepped aside to let Numbuh 362 reboot the computer. Moments later, lights flashed again and alarms rang. However, the screen came alive as it showed a diagram of the Moonbase, and every kid's blood froze as a blinking red dot stood out like a sore thumb, and in the most vulnerable of places: The Hangar.
Fanny looked at Rachel.... Who yelled, "KIDS NEXT DOOR, BATTLESTATIONS!!!!!!!"
Back in the hangar, Amelia was looking around at all the vehicles. Then she sighed, frustrated. She had no idea where she was, or how she got there. All she knew was that she was in a place she really should NOT be, and had no way to get back home. Then the alarms went off, again.
“Perfect,” Amelia muttered. “As if my day couldn't get any worse.”
Elsewhere, kids scrambled and ran toward the hangar, weapons ready. Amelia now had three choices: run, fight, or surrender. Well, actually, two choices: run or surrender. The last thing she was going to do was fight a bunch of kids, if she could help it. “Okay, I chose 'run',” Amelia uttered, picking a random direction, and doing just that. It, however, did not take long for the woman to run into a group of children wielding odd looking guns.
"Freeze, adult!!" yelled one.
“Joy,” uttered Amelia, skidding to a sudden halt, her bag swinging wildly across her torso, and something that looked like a camera falling out. “Er... Would you believe that I'm just an overgrown kid?”
"Yeah, right. How old are you?"
"Uhm... thirty*mumble* chronologically... But, I'm serious, I've been told that I'm not an adult."
"Yeah, well you sure look like one!! And it's YOU who triggered the alarms!! Now, SLOWLY, put your hands behind your head!”
"Can I put my camera in my purse, first?"
"LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR!"
Amelia looked at the "camera" and noticed the timer light blinking. "Oh crud..." she muttered, covering her eyes.
*beep beep beepbeepbeepbeep whrrrrr FLASH*
The kids stood there, blinking the flash-dots from their eyes, as Amelia scooped up her camera, and sidled away from the group.
"Uh, what were we doing just now?"
"I can't believe that worked," Amelia said looked frantically around, then picking a direction at random, she ran for it. "Feet, don't fail me now."

(JAM suggested I post in bits, in order to keep the thread refreshing.)

[aims]

keep going, this is good

[werekitty]

(It's those little things that seem to give her away.)

Amelia ended up running around for quite a while. It seemed like kids with odd looking weapons kept leaping out of the most unlikely places. The woman divided escapes between using her little gadget to confuse her pursuers long enough to get away, and just running like crazy. Amelia thanked her lucky stars that she kept herself in shape, and was able to be so nimble. Some of those kids were crack-shots with those odd guns, and in some cases it was all she could do to dodge their blasts. She was a little nonplussed about the choices in ammunition. Condiments, spices, assorted candies, fruits, vegetables (both canned and not), ice cream in some instances, and in extreme cases lasers. Perhaps it should not have been a surprise to find a food court in this place, but it was. Amelia strode, boldly, into the court, gazing around at the offerings. The kids tending the court all hid behind their counters, obviously expecting her to do something, but the woman simply walked up to a counter that looked like it had a selection of sodas, and smiled at the slightly frightened boy lurking behind it.
"I know, I know, but may I get some sodas for the posse, chasing me, and myself?" Amelia asked, baffling the boy, completely.
“You're being chased---and you want to get the people chasing you some soda?”
“Sure, why not? I know I'm not supposed to be here, but nobody's giving me a chance to explain myself. Even so, I'm not going to be a poor sport about folks just trying to do their job,” Amelia replied. “Because I'm over your age limit, I probably have to trade you something for the soda, I bet.”
"Suuuure........." he said as he reached under the counter and pressed a button. The woman reached into her bag, and rummaged around for a bit, before pulling out a Yipper card.
“You still take these?” she asked, RIGHT before alarms sounded again, and the kid snatched her card before the whole counter was sealed by a metal shield. All windows also sealed up, and the main exit was shut as well.
She knocked on the shield. "Hey, what about those drinks? I'm thirsty, and so's the guys chasing me, I'm sure."
"THERE SHE IS!!"
“Hi guys. Thirsty? I tried to get y'all some soda, but the dude, in there, isn't being very cooperative, though,"Amelia said cheerfully waving to her pursuers. They replied with laser blasts. "GEEZ! Try to be a good sport, and see what it gets me!" Amelia yelped, nimbly dodging the blasts. "You mean you guys AREN'T thirsty?"
"CAPTURRRE HERR!!!" yelled a new voice, obviously Irish.
"What'd I do? I mean seriously? And where AM I, anyway? I've been lost, ever since I fell out onto the hangar floor," Amelia said hiding behind a handy bench.
"Yerr trresspassin' on the Kids Next Doorr Moonbase, Adult!!! Now, surrenderr peacefully and we'll let ye go with ONLY yer memorry gone!!"
“Obviously, I'm in a Ki---” Amelia started to say, then goggled. “Moonbase? The moon? Wait a minute, we're on the MOON?! There were no bases on the MOON!”
"Have you looked out the window lately?" asked one, pressing a control, and one steel panel slid open to reveal a window.
"No, actually, I was a little distracted by the laser blasts, and being chased by you guys..." Amelia said, looking out the window. Then staring out the window. "We're on the moon... So that means that there IS a base on the moon. Wow. A lot can happen in twenty years."
"All rright, Strretch. Ye've had yerr toorr, now, put yerr hands behind yerr hedd, and come along quietly." Kids were surrounding her now.
"'Stretch'," she chuckled. "That's better than 'Mustard Amelia'." The guns were getting closer so Amelia put her hands behind her head, and sighed. She then noticed a familiar face in the crowd. "Hey... You're Fanny Fullbright, aren't you? Go to Gallagher Elementary?"
"WHO WANTS TA KNOW??"
"I'm Amelia Guthrie, school council woman for your district. You're principal told me about you. Pretty famous amongst your teachers too."
Numbuh 86 backed down a bit. Then she screamed, "YERR A SPY?"
“No. If I was a spy, I'd have done a lot better job of concealing myself than this. Never MIND haul off and just announce my identity, and there's the fact that I didn't even KNOW there was a base on the moon,” Amelia replied. “I ended up here by accident!”
"Well, accident or not, YE'RRE COMIN' WITH US TO TH'DECOMMISSIONIN' CHAMBERRS, IS THAT CLEARR?" Numbuh 86 yelled, brandishing her M.U.S.K.E.T.
"Great... I hated that the first time around," Amelia grumbled under her breath. They led her out of the cafeteria and down the hall. "Whoa... This place is HUGE!" Amelia exclaimed. She broke away from her escort, and ran over to the guard rail, looking out at the surface of the moon through the huge floor to ceiling window, then down down down into the depths of the Base itself. "But... why a moon base?" she asked. "And why did I look down..." she added, woozily, walking peacefully back to her escort. "Oooh... vertigo."
"Yeah, yeah, MOVE ALONG!!"
"You are SO charming," Amelia quipped. "Have YOU ever looked over that railing? It's enough to make ANYBODY dizzy." Nobody answered. No one wanted to answer to an adult, especially on the Moonbase. "You guys---got--- a bathroom?"
"Ah'm SURRE ye can HOLD IT!!" Fanny growled.
"Yeah... but I'm sure you don't want me throwing up all over..." They turned, and observed that, indeed, their adult captive was looking decidedly... green.
"I say we knock her out, decommission her, and send her back,” suggested one of the boys in the group.
"Then I'd still vomit, and probably drown," Amelia said. "There's one. 'Scuse me, ladies and gentlemen." With that she made a mad dash for the restroom, covering her mouth. After the slam of the door, they all could hear some seriously gut-wrenching retching.
"I guess she WAS dizzy..."
The toilet flushed, and Amelia came out. "I have NO head for hights," she said grinning sheepishly. Her left hand came up, and there was that camera again. *wrrrrrrrrr FLASH* "Bye" And away she went again.
Everyone stood there for a moment, "What were we doing just now?" The group murmured and shrugged amongst themselves.
"NOW AH RREMEMBERR!! THERRE'S AN ADULT LOOSE IN TH'MOONBASE!!! AFTERR HERR!! KIDS NEXT DOOR, BATTLESTATIONS!!!" Fanny ran to a wall where she pulled a lever. Now EVERY level was alerted. Especially to Amelia suddenly leaping out from behind what looked like a buffet table.
"AAAH! That SO doesn't look like a SPEAKER!"

[lilacstarprint]

LOL! This is getting pretty good, Kitty. Keep it comming.

[The J.A.M., a.k.a. Numbuh i]

Ditto on that.

[werekitty]

Dude, you helped WRITE it!

[The J.A.M., a.k.a. Numbuh i]

I know, but I still compliment a good story when I see it [HUGS]

[werekitty]

Now EVERY kid was running after her, even trying to cut her off from the front. Amelia skidded to a stop, realizing that she was surrounded, and that none of the kids were paying attention to anything other than her.
"HEY! LOOK OU-" Kids all around her fell in a heap. One suddenly propelled toward the ledge, under what railing the kids had, there. Amelia scrambled to grab him, but she was too late. Then, much to her surprise, as soon as the child fell, rockets ignited from the soles of his shoes and he flew briefly to land behind her, weapon drawn. "Wow, rocket boots," Amelia said shutting her eyes, and slowly crawling away from the edge. Those brief seconds allowed the rest of the kids to resume their positions around her.
"Awl rright, adult, hennds on yerr hedd!" Fanny growled, tired of the woman's shenanigans. Amelia put her hands on her head, but remained in her hunched over position. True, it was exactly like she was being a smart aleck, but the room was also still spinning in a most disconcerting way. "NOW STAND UP!!!!"
"May I wait until the room stops spinning, first? If not, that's okay. I'll just end up back on the floor, anyway," Amelia uttered, woozily. Numbuh 86 then motioned some guards to prod her to her feet. "All right, all right. I'll get up. Yeash. I figured that you'd rather NOT have me falling on my face."
The kids ignored her remark. "Now STAND STILL!!!" Fanny motioned one of the elite guard to proceed to handcuff her.
"And to think I ended up here, because I was worried about my niece," Guthrie uttered. The guard ignored her remark and placed the cuffs on her. Amelia sighed, now securely shackled. "Now what?"
"Now ye come QUIETLY!!!" The guards behind her prodded her and they began to lead her to the decommissioning rooms.
"You mean I can't play the histrionics for all they're worth?" Amelia asked, as she walked along. "Where's the fun in that? Why be dragged around in shackles, if you can't yell: 'I've been framed, I tell ya, FRAMED!'?"
"AH SAID QUIET, STYOOPID ADULT!!!" A few kids snickered at that. Even if they didn't really get the reference, it was kind of funny to see Numbuh 86 get tweaked by an adult with what looked like a better sense of humor.
"'Oh the Dark Hunter has caught me, and will throw me in his deep dark dungeon, where I can't spread my Rainbow Monkey Love to the whole world.;" Amelia quoted, quietly, this time, and in a fetching falsetto. This time, Fanny prodded her along, growling.
"Is she always this grouchy?" Amelia asked, taking a last look around.
"Only when tharrs a STYOOPID SMARRT ALECKY ADULT arround!!!"
"You, Fanny, are NO fun at all... Wow. Big statue."
"MOVE IT!!!"
"Could somebody tell me just what I'm supposed to be spying on? I've been lost, found, run around, and only just NOW found out that I'm on the moon,” Amelia said, as she walked along. “I was looking for my niece, Rachel, when I stumbled (literally might I add) upon this secret passage, and found myself here.” A few kids paused at that. They only knew of one Rachel, at least here.
“WEEL YE MOVE IT ALREADY!?”
“Impatient, much, Fanny? You know, that statue looks familiar. That looks like--- You know, Zero never wanted a statue," Guthrie murmured. Everyone stopped.
"YOU KNEW NUMBUH ZERO???" asked a hundred kids simultaneously.
"Oh crud I said that out loud," Amelia said. "I blame the vertigo... Yes, I knew Numbah Zero. I thought he was *incredibly* handsome at the time." A few guys chuckled at that. "I was young, impetuous... Heck I was seven. And he was sixteen.” Some kids scoffed at that. By then, Numbuh Zero wouldn't know he was Numbuh Zero, and the dragging continued. "Eh, it would have never worked... Everybody thought he had been decommissioned at thirteen, but he had simply faded into the wings, making sure that his successors kept to the charter and vision of the original Book of KND." Once again, everyone stopped and looked at her.
"Who....are ye?" asked Fanny.
"I already told you. My name is Amelia Guthrie," She said with a grin.
"AUNT AMELIA!?" Numbuh 362 yelled, as she ran from the direction of the decommissioning chambers. "HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET HERE??"
"It's a long strange story, Rachel," Amelia said with a shrug. “And what's with the language? I don't talk that way, even when upset.”
“Uhm---I blame the stress,” Rachel finally replied.
“Sounds plausible to me,” Guthrie uttered with a smile. “I got your note, but I ended up staying later than I had planned... So I was worried. I went to your house, and discovered the door was still locked, and no lights on in your room..."
"Why didn't you just *call* and ask me on my *cell phone* that YOU told me to take?" Rachel asked.
Amelia groaned. "Um---well I tried to call but--- guess I accidentally pressed the 'panic' button instead the memory button. Anyway, I wouldn't have seen this spiffy moon base, and made all these new friends, had I used my common sense."
"We're NEA yer 'friends', Adult,” Numbuh 86 growled.
"Yeash, you're so negative,” Guthrie said, chuckling.
"No, she's Positive Numbuh 86. Negative 86 lives with the rest of the DNK in a reverse world under Numbuh 4's swimming pool...oof!" stated Numbuh 73.325, until somebody elbowed him to shut him up.

[lilacstarprint]

*chuckle* lookin good. Do more! I want to know why Amelia remembers Numbuh Zero if even he doesn't remember himself.