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Butch ruffled the back of his hair, barely able to brush through the spiked mess. He was standing directly under Bubbles’ window debating on floating up or not to avoid her sister’s attention. Him and Bubbles had been secretly meeting up like this for a while now, usually just as a friendly gesture to keep him from getting beaten into a pulp, but now felt like it had a whole new meaning.
Well— It wasn’t exactly a whole new meaning.
He managed to catch glimpses of posters around Townsville, especially near the dump he and his brother lived in. All of them promoted an upcoming fair that was planned to set up as a sort of winter event for the people of the town to enjoy. It seemed like a stupid idea at first. Really stupid.
But the possibilities caught up to him and made up his mind.
With a deep breath Butch peaked inside the lower windows. No one was around. It was clear and it meant he could move up to the second floor. He carefully began to float up a few feet off the floor before catching a glimpse at Bubbles’ window.
He lightly tapped on the glass, making sure to keep quiet and to not alert anyone else but her. He knocked three times, waiting for her to notice and pray he didn't startle her.
Bubbles turned away from her computer desk, her eyes landed on the familiar green ruff and a smile crossed her. Giddy, she removed her headset and began to make her way to the window.
”Butch, what are you doing here?” She asked, clicking the lock of her window open and sliding the frame upward. Butch took the initiative to step in, struggling slightly with the small entrance before landing on the floor with a muffled thud.
“I wanted to check up on ya.” He dusted himself off, he was dressed in a flashy leather jacket padded on the inside with a fluffy brown fur coating. The cold outside was getting obvious yet he looked like he was preparing to say out longer than usual.
Bubbles took a quick glance of his outfit, moving past him to close the window. “You didn’t text me that you were coming.”
“Right, I forgot.” He muttered again, taking the time to scratch at the back of his head again. “I wanted to invite you somewhere. If you’re down.”
The bubbly blonde looked at him in slight surprise “Really?”
He hesitated, his brow furrowing slightly at her reaction. He didn’t find her surprise all that unexpected, he rarely chose to invite her out anywhere and all of their little hang outs were initiated by her. Either that or he’d indirectly invite her to things without outright telling her. This approach was definitely new for either of them.
”yeah, theres a carnival in town today.” He continued, his heart thumbing slightly louder with each hesitant word, “and I thought… we could go together for fun n stuff.”
His gaze turned back to hers silently wondering what she’d say, or if she even wanted to go with him of all people.
“Cuz… I dunno, I thought you’d like the games.” He shrugged, hoping his reasoning made sense. “And the food is good. Probably.”
Bubbles nodded along, her mouth slightly open as if weighing her options. She looked away for a second before looking back with a smile, “sure, I’d love to! Just let me get ready.”
Butch stared at her for a second longer, taking a moment to nod along, “yeah, no, yeah. Probably would’ve been better to message you. Do what you gotta.”
He stood there for a second, unsure of what to do. Bubbles simply looked at him with a shyer smile, “you can sit down. I have a walk in closet”
With a final nod Butch sat himself down on the edge of her bed, a jingle of chains emitted from his movement, and he was still able to feel the soft sheets under his baggy pants despite the thick fabric. He looked ahead and watched as bubbles walked into her closet, closing the small shutter doors behind her with an easy slide.
Seeing her leave his view felt more relieving than he was expecting. He quickly let out a sigh of relief he didn't know he was holding. The whole thing was more than he was emotionally ready to handle despite their time knowing each other.
Maybe that's what made it all feel weird.
Placing his hands on his knees he couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing. He was inviting a girl to go out with him, and not just any girl — a POWERPUFF. Buttercup would probably kick his teeth in if she ever found him hanging around her sister. It was stupid!
same girl he choked out and beat up as a kid. Vise versa.
Why was he only now getting this kind of feeling?
“Okay ready!”
Butch looked up, his foot stopping its rhythmic bouncing — he didn't even notice he was doing that. His furrowed brow relaxed once he had her back in view.
She had a light blue sweater with cotton-like padding inside for the cold. A matching pair of light brown boots that matched up with the skirt that reached up to her knees. It was a strange choice, but the white sprinkled in made it match somehow.
She even let her hair down with matching blue hair clips.
”You look like the platypus from that one show,” was all Butch could mutter out after getting a good glimpse at her. A snarky smirk crossed his face once he recalled the character.
She gave him another signature smile, one that made him want to smile back every time he saw it. “I do not!” A giggle escaped her lips before reaching around and grabbing something else from her closet.
Butch peered behind her, wondering what she was grabbing before having a worn trapper hat lightly tossed at him. It hit his chest before he caught it, realizing it was his missing winter hat from a few weeks prior.
”You forgot it here last time.” She politely explained before grabbing a beanie. “C’mon, let's go! Blossom and Buttercup aren’t here so you don't have to sneak out the window this time.”
With his lost hat in hand Butch quickly settled it onto his head, his usually spiked hair choosing to obey under the light pressure and let the hat settle onto his head. “Ight, lets go.”
It didn't take long before they arrived at the festival, it was hard to miss anyway.
In front of them stood a collection of festive fairy lights that extended for what seemed a football field worth of space, if not more. A large Ferris wheel stood at the center of it all adorned in the classic festive colors of red and white, each cart moving along in an even matching set of green. The wheel itself seemed to emit the most light as it displayed an array of changing lights from the sides. Apart from the main attraction, a selection of food stands, games, and rides splayed across the streets. A majority of which were split into sections depending on which street you walked into. The event thing even had an ice rink!
Normies walked around, an event that was clearly packed to the brim from people all over town. Long lines and crowds stretched about making the area seem hard to move around.
Butch awkwardly tapped his fingers rhythmically along the side of his leg. Patience certainty wasn’t his thing and this whole event looked like it was gonna test the hell out of it.
“The ticket stand is over there!” Bubbles enthusiastically pointed across the sidewalk to a small stand with a significant line of people paying for their access to the games.
The stand itself had a sign above it reading, ‘5 dollars = 2 tickets’
Butch frowned slightly at the idea of paying more than 20 bucks for a decent amount of tickets, but it was whatever.
“Let’s get in line before it gets any longer.” With that he took Bubble’s arm as carefully as he could before leading her into the line. “How many tickets do you think we could use?”
The bubbly blonde looked into her pocket pulling out two twenty dollar bills from inside before handing them to Butch, “Get sixteen tickets, I’ll pay for them”
”whuh?” He muttered out, “no keep ‘em, I’ll pay for the tickets.” It was obviously the ‘gentlemanly’ thing to do, wasn’t it? It made sense. At least that’s what hours of dissecting romance movies told him.
Yet, despite his offer she still insisted, ”I could give you one twenty and you can pay the other half” was all she said before handing him the twenty.
He really didn’t want to argue with her about simple charity of all things so he gave in, taking the twenty. “Fine, but if we get snacks or something I’m paying for the rest. I’m not dirt poor.”
She merely nodded, watching as Butch fumbled for his wallet for the rest of the cash needed to pay the ticket fee. The line didn't take as much time as he expected and they were soon strolling around the festival together.
“What do you want to do first?”
She looked around, her eyes immediately landing on the prizes lined up across the set of carnival games, “Oh! We can do one of those!”
Before he knew it Bubbles was already sprinting toward one of the game booths. He chased behind her, trying to make sure he wouldn’t lose her in the crowd. Butch looked around before spotting her at a simple bottle toss game, eyeing the many stuffed animals lined up in a selection of racks all over the tent.
”step right up! Step right up!” The host called out, “test your luck and win a prize at the bottle toss! Just knock the bottles down and win a prize!” It sounded like a fair deal, knock a couple of glass bottles down and get something for the girl.
”Which one do you want?” Butch asked, leaning close to Bubbles as he tried to reach her eye level and spot the one she wanted the most for himself.
“The penguin is ADORABLE! Can you get that one?” She beamed, her eyes widening with joy and excitement.
Butch snickered, a coy smirk crossing his face. “Please, tossing bottles ain’t anything special.” He moved his head from the left to the right, emitting a harsh crack as he strutted over to the stand. “One game, thanks.”
The townie nodded, giving Butch three palls in exchange for three tickets.
“Don’t go too hard!”
“Psh, I wont need to!”
winding his arm back and holding the ball back with one mit. It barely took any force before Butch launched the ball as softly as he could, only to please the blonde puff and make sure he wouldn’t get her upset at wrecking something.
even then it was pretty obvious he’d be able to—
TINK!
“Huh?” He mumbled, noticing the ball only managed to bounce off the bottles.
”OuhhH!! That was close!” the host shouted, only adding salt into the wound.
”what the fuck!? That’s not fair, I hit the thing!”
“you still have two more tries!” Bubbles reminded, excitedly pointing at the other two baseballs left.
“I know, but you saw it! I hit it!” Butch pointed at the still bottles, “I hit the thing!”
The townie looked over at the bottles before chucking, shaking his head like a parent scolding a misbehaving child. “You’re supposed to knock the bottles over, hitting them doesn't get you the victory.”
“I know how this game works, asshole” He quickly retorted, grabbing another ball and winding his arm back once more. A little more force into it should do the trick.
straining his arm more he quickly launched the ball again, this time giving it slightly more force than the last. It flew through the air at a significantly faster speed, but it still gave the same results.
TINK!
“Wha?”
“This has to be a joke.”
”ouhhh! Another miss, one last try!” The man behind the counter cheered, only pissing him off further.
Butch’s previously cocky smile turned into a frown, sheer irritation crossed his face, all of which was just to hold back the urge to absolutely knock this guy’s teeth out. It was rigged! The stupid game was rigged.
“Bullshit, this is rigged!” Butch pointed an accusatory mitt at the stand’s host. “You’re seeing this right!? No way a pile of bottles is still standing up after that!”
Bubbles' previously playful smile faltered slightly, “yeah, this looks pretty rigged.” She muttered under her breath, not wanting to start some trouble. “You don't have to win me the thing, it's obvious it's just for a quick grab.”
Before bubbles could even lead him away Butch quickly grabbed the final ball, ”I’m not gonna get undermined by a stupid carnival game!”
This eye twitched uncontrollably, his body starting to shake with energy and sheer hatred at this idiotic game. He took a step back, winding his arm and spinning it multiple times. One spin turned into two, two to three and only rose before blurring into a spinning mess. Before the Host even knew it Butch had flung the ball into a cast of blazing fire, nearly missing the host himself.
The man managed to duck in time, watching as the flaming ball crashed through the display of glass bottles, shattering a perfect hole through the glass without toppling the stick pieces and even going through the tent and into the building behind it.
“HAHA! take that you and your stupid bottles!” He lifted his arms up in a cheer, a manic smile coming over him as he celebrated his victory. A victory short lived once he noticed the overwhelmingly pungent smell of smoke that suddenly filled the air.
“Uh oh.”
Looking behind the tent he could barely notice the sparking flame begging to eat away at the corners of the ball-shaped hole in the fabric. It seemed like his move did more than do a little display of power.
“GAH! Fire! FIRE!” The host shouted, quickly running to look around his stand for something that could kill the heat.
”BUTCH!”
his attention snapped onto bubbles, “what!? You saw the thing! I had to toss it down!”
shaking her head Bubbles quickly used her laser beam, cutting the small snip of fabric to prevent it from spreading before running around the tent to stomp the flame out. With a few grunts and harsh stomps the fire was able to be put out. She even took the time to check the building behind it to see if the ball did any more damage. Which it seemed it hadn’t
“Oh, thank you Bubbles!” The host muttered in an exhausted sigh, "Take whatever you want, it was clear rigging the bottles wasn’t… ahem… the best idea.”
“Damn right it wasn’t!” Butch called out, still visibly angry.
She flashed Butch a glare, “It’s fine, sorry about the tent.” Stepping around the tent she found herself next to him once more
“ya gonna grab the toy you wanted or what?”
Her upset expression didn't seem to last long before she smiled again, “I guess I should. It was rigged anyways, right?”
”exactly!” Butch smiled, a stupidly toothy smile. “If it weren’t rigged I wouldn’t have done that.” Floating up he quickly freed the massive stuffed penguin from the prison that was his display.
“Still, I don’t think you should’ve gone that far.”
“but… you agree it wasn’t uncalled for?”
”I guess it wasn’t.” she shrugged. holding out her hands to hold the stuffed penguin.
Butch playfully fist-pumped with pride, getting a small giggle from Bubbles.
“Let’s get a snack and we’ll continue through, I could use some sugar.” He smiled, patting his stomach.
The duo made their way to the nearest snack stand, which had a decent selection of popcorn and sweets, but the two of them wanted to get the infamous sweet caramel apple. Butch, being the gentleman he is, kept his word and paid for their food. Returning them to their search for other games to play.
Bubbles gnawed at her apple, looking around at what games they could play for some neat little trinkets or prizes to take home.
“Hey, check this out!”
Butch turned his eyes away from his caramel apple to look where Bubbles was calling him from. He glanced around the area before spotting her pointing at a strength measurer. The machine itself was simple, one big hammer and smaller platform to hit.
Taking a bite out of his apple butch quickly stretched his arms with pride. “Want me to win you something else?”
“No, I'm gonna win you something!” She happily answered back, taking five tickets before handing them over to the host of the game.
Butch raised an eyebrow. Win him something? “Really?” He asked, slightly curious about her statement. Bubbles merely nodded, her baby blue eyes shining with excitement.
”Yeah really!” She lifted the hammer, towering it over her head, “watch!”
With a rough swing Bubbles managed to throw the hammer down and slam it right onto the platform. The lights on the machine’s sides blinked as a puck was lifted off. The first row of light lit up, a chorus of lights quickly followed behind until the puck finally reached the bell perched at the very top. Sounding a hard ring.
“We have a winner!!” The host called out, clapping once a pre-recorded sound emitted from the win, “go ahead claim your prize!”
Butch watched in slight awe. He never doubted her strength, he has been at the other end of her blows multiple times before, but seeing her in action was always mesmerizing.
”What do you want?” She asked, stepping close like he’d done before, only that she was a few inches shorter than him.
A grin crossed his face, a bit more embarrassed than what he was used to but it was a smile nonetheless. “Let’s see.. decisions, decisions..” He tapped his chin to look over his options. He wasn’t a plushy kind of guy.
His eyes scanned the multiple toys and miniature plush keychains when his gaze landed on a large duck. It looked identical to the penguin he’d won her. With a smirk he quickly pointed at the duck. “That thing!”
Bubbles looked up and spotted what he was talking about. A smile crossed her face once more as she politely asked the game host for it. The townie complied, using a stick to free the dangling duck before giving it to Butch.
“Hell yeah!” He cheered, “we’re matching now.” now holding up the penguin and duck together in his arms, barely managing to steady his carameled apple from falling and sticking to either one of the plush animals.
Bubbles giggled again, taking her respective plush. “Yeah! They’re cute together, huh?”
“Yeah.” He awkwardly smiled, his eyes settled on the two animals, quietly thinking to himself. “Let’s see what else we find, yeah? Maybe less toys cause—“
“Cause we can barely carry these two with one hand?”
“Exactly.”
The day was promising, what was noon eventually turned to night. The duo had spent the majority of their tickets on rides like the spinning teacups to the zipper — which may or may not have ended with a certain puff and ruff blowing chunks by the end of it.
It certainly worked as a caution to eating before a crazy ride.
It was a wonderful time. One that eventually would come to an end as they were quickly running out of money for ticket refills.
“How many tickets do we have left?”
“Ehhh, around ten.” He counted, shifting them through the palm of his hand. “What should we use them on?”
Bubbles looked around, looking at the rides they haven’t gone on yet to the possibility of leaving with a few more plushies now that they didn’t have to drag them around to enjoy the theme park. The set sun made it clear they’d have to leave soon.
That's when her gaze settled on the first thing they stumbled upon once arriving at the fair. The Ferris wheel.
“Oh! How about the Ferris wheel?”
“Really?” He raised a brow, “we could literally fly for a view like that.”
”It's about the experience.” She added, “C’mon the line is short!”
Bubbles grabbed his hand into hers, causing his heart to skip a beat, before pulling him along to get in line.
The wheel itself was a marvel from far away, but close up made it clear it was a bit worn down. The whole thing screeched with simple movements, the chairs itself seemed to tilt with even the slightest bit of weight. Truly the epitome of human creation.
The ride conductor guided the duo onto the ride. The moment Butch sat down the small seat tilted forward with his weight, nearly making him fall out of his seat. Bubbles watched with a laugh before sitting with him, using the stuffed animals as weight bearers to even the field out.
After they were loaded, the ride began to move, making space for the next pair. Once the ride was full the conductor made his move to turn it on and start the show.
The jittery movement of the ride gave off a weird sensation Butch wasn’t used to, one that he’d probably only felt once or twice when doing a dangerously stupid move mid-flight. Yet it wasn’t all too bad.
Bubbles was certainly enjoying herself.
and that made him happy.
sometime passed till the ride stopped, leaving the ruff and puff at the tip-top of the Ferris wheel. The spot seemed to overshadow the rest of Townsville, providing the same view he was used to when flying home at night. Yet she was right. It certainly felt like a different experience.
“I had fun today.”
Butch snapped out of his thoughts, turning his attention onto Bubbles. “Really?”
”Yeah.” She softly smiled, one he felt like he’d seen a million times over, yet felt special all the same. “I love spending time with you like this.”
His mouth fell open slightly, unsure of what to say, what to do. “Y-Yeah?” He flinched at his voice, coughing into his hand before trying again, “yeah?”
Bubbles continued to smile at him, “yeah.”
The two stared at one another for what felt like forever. He could see the shining lights of the festival below shining against her eyes, making them shine like stars. It all felt corny, but it was oddly true.
His breath hitched slightly, suddenly feeling his heart beating a hundred miles a second. He could swear he could hear it too. hearing double even.
Or was he picking up another sound?
The silence lingered a little longer. Bubbles looked at him, her smile softer than ever.
Quietly, the two began to close the space between each other, their faces moving closer — their lips barely inches away yet still hesitant about going any further.
He could feel her breath on his lips…
CREAAAKKKK!!!
The disruptive sound suddenly jolted the two away in surprise, simultaneously looking down at the ride that had suddenly seemed to malfunction. Carts below them began tilting farther than before, causing a slight panic to erupt from the townies on the higher elevated seats.
Bubbles looked around, noticing the way the seats slowly began to tilt forward ever so slightly , what started as a simple uncomfortable angle began to loosen into possibly going completely upside down.
”Butch.” He shook his shoulder, “is it just me or is the seat tilting?”
The ruff looked down, noticing that their seat wasn’t the only one ominously moving forward as many of the other ride’s seats began to do the same. “The thing is tilting, and isn’t only ours.”
Feeling her heroine instinct kick in Bubbles quickly shot out from the seat, “c’mon! Help me get people off before someone falls.”
Butch nodded, kicking the bar open before flying by her side. ”alright.”
As the carts moved the ride creaked and tilted, causing more panic to erupt from the cast of riders. It wasn’t anything drastic, but it was certainly better to prevent it than leave it be.
Bubbles flew down to the higher leveled seats, coaxing riders to take her hands before settling them down to the safety of the ground. Butch followed her lead, zipping passenger after passenger to the safety of ground in a quick bolt of light.
“Busted thing is faulty!” Butch muttered, kicking at the now empty Ferris wheel. “Who even green lit it?”
Bubbles shrugged, “who knows, but at least it didn’t hurt anyone, just a slight scare.” She muttered, saving their abandoned plushies from the top of the ride.
“Whatever.” He muttered back, seemingly upset about something other than the wheel. Something that made her flustered thinking about it.
But the initial mood was ruined. And neither was too sure about how to go about it.
“Want me to walk you home?”
He extended a hand, trying to salvage what normalcy he could. The blue puff looked back at him and a small smile crossed her face again.
“I’d love that.”
Instead of flying home as usual the duo decided to walk the whole way back, taking in the dim lighting of the city and glow of the moon. It certainly felt like a Christmas night — nostalgic in a way. Snowfall had begun to pile up along the streets and frosted over the concrete, making it a fun mishap to slide around in.
The walk itself was quiet. Not an awkwardly embarrassing silence, but an enjoyable one. It was a tad bit strange since either one would have started spewing random nonsense about now or even a few silly stories, but no.
Butch’s gaze flickered into the sky above, a barely noticeable flicker of stars managed to shine above them despite the city’s glow. His gaze moved back to Bubbles, noticing the way she tugged her beanie further down her head. She was even holding her penguin closer for warmth.
A smile crossed his face for a moment, moving his hands to tug his own winter hat off before placing it on top of her head.
She let out a sound of surprise, a small yelp at suddenly being blinded by the significantly larger headwear. He chuckled and adjusted it for her.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
He tucked a hand into his jacket’s pocket, noticing the familiar line of houses that crossed into her street. A sign tonight would come to an end.
His steps slowed by the time they were only three houses down from making it to her destination. From afar he could clearly tell the house was currently occupied, a warm light cast from inside. It felt warm and inviting.
His brow furrowed slightly.
Bubbles’ own steps faltered, taking a moment to pause and look back at him. “You’re not—?”
He shook his head, “you know the drill. They don’t really want me around.” He flashed her an awkward smile, almost trying to play off the disappointment.
She nodded, looking down at the ground silently pondering what to do next.
Her eyes shot up, "Oh," she muttered before quickly removing his hat from her head. “Here, before I forget.”
Butch smiled at the gesture, “it’s fine you can hold onto it for me.” He waved his hands, letting her hold onto it. “I’ll pick it up next time I come over.”
Bubbles looked up at him, her smile coming back, “alright…”
The two stood together silently. Neither one made a move to leave nor say a single word.
She dug the front of her boot against the snowy pavement, and he lightly tapped the side of his leg.
“I’ll see you later?”
He muttered, silently hoping what they first stated at the Ferris wheel could continue here. Hoping that she’d catch on.
“Yeah.”
Instead, she gave him one last wave, taking a few steps back before starting to walk down the street to reach her house. Butch stood there watching her leave. Waiting until she opened the door to her house and closed it behind her. He waited another second or so, silently wondering if she’d come out for a second more before finally choosing to turn on his heel and leave.
Ding!
He paused mid-step. His hands quickly fumbled with his jacket and pants, looking for the pocket that stored the source of the sound. Once he felt the familiar shape he pulled out the device, looking it over.
“Want to watch a movie at my place? The window's open.”
A wonky smile appeared on his face. Quickly writing out a message.
“Yeah, give me a minute.”
He settled the phone back into his pocket and fixed the comedically large duck plush in his hand, ready to figure out how to sneak past the home’s windows to make this night last a little longer.