News of Azul Bug and Chat Berde quickly spread all throughout the world. The kingdom, Velocity Ville, and all around. Every truck were amazed by their work and praised the superheroes for saving Axle City.
Crusher was surprised that, by the next day, the Internet and the News was bursting with messages and praises for Azul Bug and Chat Berde, claiming them to be great heroes and cheering for them. There were even others who were bashing Hawkmoth and his akumas, telling him to back-off and leave their cities and kingdoms alone.
What's more was the websites and blogs created with the limited info about the two miraculous superheroes.
"Ezra, did you create the main blog for Azul Bug and Chat Berde?"
"Maaaybe," Ezra grinned as he sat in front of the TV in his pajamas, a bowl of mashed potatoes on his lap.
"By the Force, Ezra," Crusher slapped a tire on his face and groaned he then turned to Longg and Tikki, who were both on the table beside the blunet and eating their own breakfast. "You two didn't stop him?"
"My queen will do as he pleases," Longg shrugged.
"And can you really stop him?" Tikki raised an eyebrow.
"Fair," Crusher sighed, turning back to his brother. "Well, at least get dressed after breakfast. We're gonna meet up in the park with Pickle, Darington and their friends, so they could meet you,"
"Aw, man," Ezra slumped back, laying down lazily. "but I don't want to meet Mr. Perfect and Athletic... and I wanna stay at home..."
"Wow, a dislike on Blaze already?" Crusher stared at him in surprise. "That's a first,"
"This place is too accepting on goody-four-wheels," Ezra groaned. "Only those who know reality will dislike those like Blaze or Spongebob,"
"Eh, they don't cheat like me, so there's that," Crusher gave a shrug and turned away.
"Doesn't mean they should leave you out of the Blazing Team." Ezra grumbled but lowly, so the other couldn't hear him. "Stupid Blaze and Co. When I tell Mom about this, he is SO kicking their bumpers for it."
X
X
X
"So, who's this new friend of yours, Darington?" Watts asked as the friends drove through the park.
"New to you guys, but not new to the city," Darington clarified. "He's been here before, and he came for a visit,"
"Is he racin' today?" Starla questioned.
"Up to him," Darington shrugged before coming to a stop. "Oh, hey, Pickle,"
"Hi, Darington!" the green truck greeted with a smile. "You excited to see Ezra?!"
"Yes, and no," Darington let out a groan. "I mean, sure, I missed him, but a little warning before coming here would be nice,"
"Eh, you know him," Pickle laughed.
"Unfortunately," Darington sighed. "Well, when is he and Crusher getting here?"
"Crusher knows him too?" Stripes looked surprised. "He has more than Pickle for a friend?"
"First of all, Stripes, rude," Darington glared at him. "Second, yes, he knows him. We were here in Axle City before the rest of you, remember? We just... hid out and remained in private when we were all younger,"
"Zeg not wait to meet new friend!" Zeg cheered. "Zeg excited!"
"Yeah!" Blaze grinned before noticing something on Pickle. "Oh! Hey, Pickle, is that a new tire ring?"
"Mm-hmm," Pickle nodded, turning his tire a bit to show off the silver ring. "Pretty, right?"
They suddenly heard Crusher's horn from afar, and they turned to see Crusher driving towards them. Pickle beamed and waved at him.
"Hey there, Crusher!"
"Hey, Pickle. Hey, Darington," Crusher greeted with a wave and a calm smile, one that took the others back.
"Um, hi, Crusher," Gabby waved, dismounting from Watts. "Where's the new friend?"
"Might need someone to pry him from the driver's seat," Crusher pointed to himself. "Ezra, get down. Everyone wants to meet,"
"Fine..." A groan from inside echoed through, and the door from the driver's seat opened to reveal a blunet teen with sapphire blue eyes as he wore an orange ensemble. "Hi, everyone, my name's Ezra,"
"Hi, Ezra!" Blaze beamed as he drove forward, tire out to shake. "I'm Blaze, and this is my best friend AJ!" He then turned to others. "And these are the rest of our friends; Stripes, Starla, Watts, Gabby, and Zeg!"
Ezra stared at the red truck from top to bottom before moving back. "Geez, Darry, how are you friends with cheerful trucks? It's weird,"
"He's friendly, Ez," Darington rolled his eyes. "That's the way he is,"
"Life isn't friendly," Ezra pointed out. "Can't you be friends with realistic trucks?"
"NO! Reality stinks!"
"That's why Dad wants us to be more realistic!"
"Um, 'Dad'?" Stripes blinked.
"You never told us that you had brothers," Starla pointed out.
"Eh," Darington shrugged. "What was I gonna say? Oh, hi guys, my name is Darington, and I'm the younger brother of that egotistic cheater by the trash heap of a room in the Monster Dome,"
"Crusher's your brother?!" Everyone's jaw dropped.
"Not by blood," Crusher said. "Darington, Ezra and I are all adopted, but brothers nonetheless,"
"Yeah," Pickle nodded in agreement before his gaze came to Crusher's exhaust pipes. "Woah, are those pipe earrings?"
"A present from Ezra," Crusher gave a shrug.
"Oh! That reminds me," Ezra took out a box from out-of-nowhere and handed it to the stunt truck. "Here, Darry,"
"Yay! Presents!" Darington beamed and took the box, grinning as he took out a new helmet from inside.
"I missed your last birthday, so, yeah, this is to make up for it," Ezra chuckled, folding his arms and leaning against a tree.
"Cool!" Darington admired his helmet before narrowing his eyes. "This isn't stolen, is it?"
"Darry, you know me too well," Ezra smirked. "Of COURSE it's stolen,"
"So will you be racing today?" Pickle asked.
"Oh, definitely," Ezra grinned, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "It's a great way to show Mr. Athletic and Friendly over here what Crusher and I can do. No cheating, of course, but we've got better ways to win, eh, Crusher?"
"Ooh~ THIS I've got to know," Crusher was giddy in excitement.
"It's a simple one," Ezra waved his hand, and a tube appeared in his hand, with an electric quill glowing from within.
"Nic gave you a quill? No way!" Darington gasped.
"Got a deal for helping him plan his wedding to his boyfriend," Ezra laughed. "And he's the fastest hedgehog alive, so, you know, just a warning,"
"We're ready for anything!" Blaze grinned. He loved a little competition. "Right, guys?"
Everyone let out a cheer in response. Only Darington didn't cheer. Instead, he slapped a tire on his face and shook his head. Pickle laughed at Darington's reaction while Crusher seemed excited to use the quill. Ezra smirked at the other's foolishness.
Clearly, the words 'fastest hedgehog' didn't seem to enter their skulls.
X
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X
Gabriel watched as the comments of his alter ego's existence appear on the screen. He didn't really care for the hate. Hawkmoth had haters in Paris since he first made himself public, so he wasn't fazed by the mean comments.
What DID tick him off was the overconfidence of people with their new superheroes.
The battle from the previous day had been filmed through many cameras. The videos were widespread all over the Internet, and the main blog, the Miracu-Blog, had many fans already. It was no doubt that the blog belonged to his son's strange classmate Ezra, with his face being exposed on the first video of the battle, but it made him wonder how the boy managed to film whilst being Yojimbo in battling Hog-nado.
'That boy will never make sense to me.'
Gabriel groaned and turned off the screen with a growl.
"They think that just because Azul Bug and Chat Berde are here to save them that I would give up and back down so easily? Well," he smirked, a glint of evil shimmering through his glasses. "they should think again,"
X
X
X
"Leeeet's BLAZE!"
Blaze and AJ zoomed through the track, their blazing speed causing them to speed up and dash. Crusher and Ezra were taking the lead when the duo dashed right past them, stealing the lead.
"Oh no, Blaze and AJ are gonna win!" Crusher whined. "We've got to do something!"
"Don't you worry, big bro," Ezra smirked as he set the tube into his eldest brother's dashboard.
The electric factor of the quill surged all through Crusher's body. The dark blue truck shuddered as he felt himself speed up little by little, the electricity making him glow a bright shade of blue. The glow reached his eyes, which were possessed by the glowing blue power of the quill as his wheels began to turn quicker and quicker until it was like his wheels weren't spinning any longer.
Everyone gasped as Crusher suddenly zoomed through the track. Even Blaze and AJ were amazed, eyes widening as their rival zipped past them and towards the finish line.
"And the winner is... CRUSHER!"
The crowd cheered as Crusher sped to receive the trophy. He beamed and waved to the crowd.
"Thank you, everyone!" he said. "But I didn't do this alone!"
The door to his driver's seat swung open, and Ezra came out, flickering his hair dramatically before waving at everyone. The crowd grew quiet for a moment before releasing another cheer. The announcer gasped.
"It's... It's Ezra!" he cried out. "Ladies and gentle-trucks, Team Blueberry is BACK!"
Ezra chuckled. "Yep, I'm back. The ol' blueberry team is back and rocking!"
"Team Blueberry?" Blaze raised an eyebrow, approaching them curiously. "Crusher, you never said you had a driver before,"
"Eh," Crusher chuckled. "been so long that I forgot,"
"That was intense!" AJ laughed. "How'd you two go so fast?"
"Warned you that the quill came from the fastest hedgehog alive," Ezra grinned.
"WOW!" Pickle squealed as he jumped towards the others, beaming. "That was AWESOME, Crusher, Ezra!"
"Nice one, bros!" Darington squeezed the two into a hug. "I miss our brother-bonding races!"
Crusher and Ezra laughed, squirming in their brother's hold and pretending to get annoyed as the other racers finished the race then came to join them and congratulate the two on their victory. Neither of them were too occupied to notice the dark akuma fluttering into the crowd...
X
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X
"Yes..." Hawkmoth smirked as he felt the burning rage of one of the audience in the race. "Get to her, little akuma. Evilize that being! Bend her to my will!"
The akuma entered a pompom, and the butterfly-shaped glowing mask appeared on his face. He grinned and looked forward, through the connection and towards his new victim.
"Cheerleader, I am Hawkmoth," he spoke. "The one who you assumed to win had surrendered himself to the one who cheats. What a disgrace. I am giving you the power to take down the unworthy champion, and anyone else who stands in your way. And in return, all I ask for is Azul Bug and Chat Berde's miraculouses!"
["Time to cheer and win!"] the akuma took over the girl, corrupting her little by little with it's dark goo...
X
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X
"AAAAAH!"
The group jumped as they heard everyone scream and drove away. They turned to see why they were screaming and gasped to see an akuma; an indigo monster truck cheerleader with blood red pompoms as she used her long pigtails to hover over everyone.
"I am Cheerleader!" she scowled. "And I only cheer and spare those who deserve them! Get ready to fall, cheaters!"
'Well, kriff this.' Crusher hissed, knowing he had to transform immediately, so, to not make everyone suspicious since they knew that he was a scaredy-truck, he took off, screaming. "AAAAH!"
He drove through the crowd of frightened monster trucks and out of the Monster Dome. He headed to an alley way and stopped screaming then he made sure he was hidden in the darkness before opening his inventing pouch. Tikki flew out immediately, moving to his side to hide in case anyone else saw them.
Once he knew the coast was clear, he let out a sigh. "Alright, time to silence the cheer out of this cheerleader. Tikki, SPOTS ON!"
X
X
X
Pickle watched as his best friend drove off. To him, his best friend was just scared, as usual, so he acted too and left. He drove through the entrance and headed off to transform when he caught sight of Azul Bug dashing towards the Dome. He skidded to a stop and dazily watched his idol/crush.
"Wow..." he sighed dreamily. "It hasn't been 2 minutes, and Azul Bug's already here~"
"Hey, kitten, get your head out of the clouds!" Plagg flew out from Pickle's trunk. "Don't you need to help?"
"Oh! Right!" Pickle turned to drive to another alleyway, past the panicking trucks. "Plagg, CLAWS OUT!"
X
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X
"Everyone, to the exit!" Blaze called out as he, AJ and their friends guided the rest of the crowd out to escape. "Drive carefully and head to your houses immediately!"
Only Ezra didn't move. He stared up at the akuma calmly, sipping on juice. His camera drone was on invisible mode as he filmed the whole thing, calmly watching Azul Bug battle the crazy akuma. Darington spotted him and sighed, rolling his eyes.
Of COURSE, his brother would see this as a natural phenomenon. How many universes, timelines and dimensions that he had visited already were just as chaotic as this?
"Ezra!" the stunt truck turned to see AJ and Blaze ready to drive to 'save' the blunet. "Get out of the way---"
"Blaze, AJ, no,"
He quickly stopped the truck before he could do anything. The red truck and his driver stared at him, horrified.
"What do you mean 'no'?!" AJ cried out. "Aren't you gonna save your brother?!"
"Saving him from his own stupidity is the same as stopping me from my own stunts," Darington chuckled. "Not possible,"
"What do you---"
"Can you two shush?" Ezra scolded, waving at them to be quiet. "I'm trying to film this for the Miracu-blog,"
"Can you do it while being safe?" Darington nagged.
Ezra shrugged and flicked his hand. A helmet appeared on his head before he turned back to film. Darington sighed.
"Good enough, I guess,"
"Yeah, now shush," Ezra gave a shushing motion. "I gotta film!"
Blaze and AJ exchanged confused and shocked faces. They turned to Darington, who shrugged.
"He's faced worse," he just said.
Ezra smirked and continued to film in peace. He watched as Berde joined the battle, partly-flirting with Azul, partly-fighting the akuma. The blunet sighed.
'This feels familiar... stupid de ja vu Love Square...'
X
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X
"LUCKY CHARM!"
Electric blue ladybugs sprung into the air, magically creating a black-spotted blue trumpet. The trumpet fell into Azul's hands.
"What in the name of...?" Azul face-palmed. "I'm not even sure how 'lucky' is this charm anymore,"
"Cool!" Berde jumped over from fighting, glancing at the trumpet. "Are we gonna form a band?! Or a parade?!"
"No! We--- wait," Azul looked around, his vision darkening.
He spotted three things, though; the trumpet, Berde's baton and his yoyo. He thought about it for a moment before grinning.
"I got a plan," he tied his yoyo to his wrist and turned to his partner. "Berde, do you know how to twirl your baton?"
"Well, yeah," Berde did just that, a smirk on his face. "Ta-da!"
Azul chuckled, rolling his eyes before handing the trumpet. "Alright, I got it. Now, I've got a plan, and it has something to do with leading a parade,"
"YASSS!" Berde cheered, twirling his baton and gripping the trumpet with his other hand before jumping down. "Hey, Cheerleader! Over here!"
"ARGH!" the akuma snarled, eyes burning sickly green as she aimed her pompom at the black cat miraculous holder.
The said pompom released a few spikes, firing at the blonde superhero. Berde jumped out of the way and smirked. He twirled his baton again, throwing it up into the air.
"And... MARCH!" he proceeded to march, twirling his baton around and blowing against the trumpet as he went forward and back. "March, 2, 3 ,4! March, 2, 3, 4!"
"...what?" Cheerleader looked confused.
Azul took the distraction as an opportunity and threw his yoyo at the akuma's tire, snatching it to hold her back. Cheerleader snarled, turning to him, but before she could say anything, the ladybug miraculous holder quickly zipped around her, tying her up in the yoyo's string.
"GAH!" she hissed. "Release me, Azul Bug!"
"Nah, that's doom for us," Azul quickly tied a double not then he kicked the spiky pompom off her tire. "Berde, cataclysm!"
"As you wish, Bugaboo," Berde dropped the trumpet and his baton then he jumped, claws glowing black. "CATACLYSM!"
His claws touched the pompom, and it disintegrated into ashes in an instant. The akuma flew out from the remains, and Azul grabbed it with his yoyo before it could escape.
"Gotcha!" he sighed in relief and pressed on his yoyo, releasing the purfied butterfly. "Bye, little butterfly,"
"Great job, partner!" Berde grinned, lifting a fist. "Pound it?"
Azul smiled and nodded, connecting their fists together. He then turned to grab the trumpet and threw it to the air.
"Miraculous... AZUL BUG!"
The trumpet evaporated into magical, electric ladybugs, speeding all through the Monster Dome and repairing it. They flew out as well, fixing whatever other damage that the akuma did before disappearing into air.
"Well, at least that's over," Azul wiped the sweat off his forehead.
"Nice job, Azul!"
He froze and slowly turned to see Ezra with a group of excited, frantic fan trucks. The blunet had a smug look on his face as he stepped back to let the fan trucks swarm towards the superheroes. Berde shrieked and held onto Azul, who grabbed and carried him by instinct while his eyes widened in horror.
"Azul Bug!"
"Chat Berde!"
"THANK YOU FOR SAVING US!"
"YOU TWO ARE OUR HEROES!"
"CAN I HAVE AN AUTOGRAPH?!"
"CAN YOU SIGN MY BOOK?!"
"ARE YOU TWO DATING?!"
Berde snorted at that. "Ha! I wish,"
Azul growled, causing the other to shut his mouth. He dropped his partner on the ground then he turned away and spun his yoyo.
"First off," he turned his head back to the crowd. "NO, we aren't dating. We LITERALLY just met yesterday, and there's no such thing as love at first sight,"
"How about love at first fight?!" one of the trucks asked.
"No such thing either," Azul shook his head. "Second, we're honored to fight for you all, and we promise you that we won't rest until Hawkmoth is gone, and his miraculous is confiscated for the good of the world,"
The crowd cheered. Berde jumped to his feet and let out his own cheer.
"Yeah!" he beamed. "You go, Bugaboo!"
"Yeah, yeah," Azul threw his yoyo up. "Now, if there are no more questions, I must leave before my timer runs out. You too, kitty,"
"Oh, right," Berde sighed and twirled his baton to leave. "See ya next time, M'Lady!"
Azul froze mid-jump. A deep blush crossed his cheeks as the trucks squealed. He hissed and turned to scold his partner, but the black miraculous holder had already left. He sighed and shook his head.
"Stupid cat..." he grumbled before swinging away.
X
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X
"WOW!" Pickle exclaimed as he watched the video from the Miracu-Blog. "Azul Bug and Chat Berde are SO cool! Especially Azul Bug!"
"Not really..." Crusher groaned. He was still pissed with what Berde said to his alter ego, and he was NOT hiding it. "They're a bunch of superhero-wannabes,"
"Crusher, they're AMAZING heroes!" Pickle defended. "How could you say such a thing?!"
"Chat Berde's a flirt," Crusher pointed to the video. "And Azul Bug? He's a stupid wannabe who thinks he's so great and heroic! Pssh, not true! I can be a better hero than he can ever be!"
"Didn't... you run from the akuma earlier?" Pickle raised an eyebrow.
"The akuma was after me," Crusher shrugged. "What did you expect?"
"Still," Pickle shook his head. "Azul Bug is an AMAZING superhero!"
"He's the WORST!" Crusher roared out. "If he's SO amazing then he should be going after Hawkmoth and bringing him to justice! Right now! What does he even do on his spare times?!"
"Even heroes need a rest!" Pickle argued.
"Woah, woah," Blaze came in between them as he and his friends drove towards them. "Take it easy, you two,"
"Are you two okay?" AJ asked. "We've never seen you two argue like this,"
"Crusher's insulting Azul Bug!" Pickle cried out. "What if he stops helping us once we insult him?"
"Pssh, if he was a real hero then he'll help no matter what," Crusher huffed. "No matter the haters,"
"Ya're just jealous that you'll never be a hero as good as Azul Bug," Starla scoffed.
"Yuck, never compare me to Azul Bug," Crusher gagged. "I'm BETTER!"
"Yeah, you wish," Stripes snickered. "No one can be as amazing as Azul Bug,"
"Yeah," Watts agreed. "He and Chat Berde are amazing!"
"Superheroes are amazing!" Zeg nodded vigorously. "They save Axle City twice from akuma!"
"Pssh, so what?" Crusher huffed and turned to drive away. "I can be better than they could ever be!"
Darington watched him take his leave. He took a deep breath and proceeded to drive after him.
"I'll be back, guys. I just need to handle something,"
X
X
X
"CAN YOU BELIEVE WHAT THEY SAID?!"
Ezra sighed as he held a box of tissues. Crusher was curled up by the corner of his apartment living room, hugging himself with his tires as he bawled his eyes out and trembled. Tikki was by his side, rubbing his comfortingly.
"Aww, it's okay, Crusher," she soothed. "I'm sure they didn't---"
"They DID!" Crusher wailed. "They ALWAYS MEAN IT!"
"You just insulted Azul Bug and Chat Berde," Ezra pointed out. "I am thoroughly concerned on that, by the way. Why did you insult yourself?"
"Best way to hide, I guess," Crusher sniffled. "And the only chance I have for insulting myself indirectly,"
"Ugh..." Ezra face-palmed. "Why am I even surprised?"
"Do you know what's worse?" Crusher whimpered. "Pickle sided with them. Not with me, like he usually does. It just... I feel kinda... hurt,"
Ezra's expression softened as he waited for his big brother to straighten up and open up. It was normal for the dark blue truck to open up to the family, him mostly. If he didn't have anyone to vent to, who knew what would happen to him?
It took an hour at the latest, with Ezra acknowledging Darington as he came into the apartment a few minutes after the venting started, but neither of them said a word to disrupt their brother. Tikki hid from the stunt truck and went to her holder's inventing pouch. After the hour, Crusher finally took notice of his younger brother and wiped his tears.
"What do you want, Darry?"
"You know, even I'm surprised that Pickle didn't side with you," Darington chuckled. "Even when Blaze does the right thing, he usually sides with you,"
"Yeah, don't need to rub it in," Crusher hissed before getting up to drive away to his room.
"Eh, you tried," Ezra patted a disappointed Darington. "Can't really do anything but give him some air,"
"Yeah, I guess," Darington sighed. "By the way, do you know who Azul Bug and Chat Berde are?"
"Why would you think that I would know who they are?"
"YOU are Yojimbo," Darington dead-panned. "Also, I'm not an idiot,"
"Better if you don't know," Ezra told him. "For your own safety. You CAN meet my kwami, if you like,"
"I think... that would be fair," Darington nodded. "What about Crusher?"
"He needs to vent, and his room is a haven," Ezra offered his brother a smile. "He'll be fine. Trust me,"
"Alright," Darington returned the smile. "I trust you, lil' bro,"
X
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X
"I can't BELIEVE the nerve of that big fella," Pickle groaned as he drove back to his apartment. "I mean, can you believe what he said about Azul Bug?!"
"Kitten, if there are supporters, then there are always haters to follow along," Plagg shrugged as he floated beside the green truck and munched on the cheese in his hands. 'Or a holder with the lowest self-esteem ever. I feel bad for Sugarcube handling another holder with a low self-esteem.'
"I just... I can't believe that we argued over... superheroes," Pickle sighed. "We've had some disagreements, but one of us usually backs down to avoid a huge conflict,"
"Yeah, yeah," Plagg half-listened to his holder vent. "Arguments are normal. You two are best friends, right?"
"Yeah... we are," Pickle nodded. "Are arguments normal between best friends?"
"Uh, yeah," Plagg sighed, turning to him. "Look, Kitten, best friends aren't always happy-go-lucky. They have disagreements, they have fights, and they get mad and hurt. It's natural,"
"Even if it is, I don't like it," Pickle frowned, heading up to his apartment and shutting the door behind him. "It makes me feel that... that our friendship's falling apart,"
"Eh," Plagg gave another shrug. "I'm not the one to give advice, that's usually the job of Azul Bug's kwami, but I DO know that fighting can make a relationship stronger, platonic or not,"
"I'll take your word on that, I guess," Pickle looked doubtful as he made his way to the window. "For now, I need to vent out more,"
"By taking a patrol?" Plagg let out a groan before grumbling. "Of COURSE that's what you holders plan every time there's a problem..."
Pickle chuckled at the kwami's reaction. He opened the window and held out his tire ring.
"Plagg, CLAWS OUT!"
X
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X
"Tikki, SPOTS ON!"
With a flash, Azul transformed and dashed out of his bedroom window. He used his yoyo to swing across the rooftops, moving further and further away from his apartment and away from his brothers. He wiped his eyes as he swung, sniffling his tears as he made his way to the rooftop of the clocktower of Axle City. He stopped swinging and sat down, leaning his head back on the roof with a shaky sigh.
"By the Will of Ashla..." he set his yoyo down and held himself, trying to not breakdown again. "Oh Force, give me strength..."
He took a few deep breaths to calm himself. He didn't want to attract an akuma, he knew better than to do that (though it could give him another chance to capture it before it akumatized anyone else). He closed his eyes and concentrated on his emotions, trying his best to tame them, collect them before they escaped and attracted any trouble.
He was so focused that he failed to hear his superhero partner arrive at the clocktower to greet him.
X
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X
"WAHOO!" Berde cheered as he jumped across the rooftops.
Going out on a superhero patrol was going to be his new way of venting out, that's for sure. It was relaxing, relieving and it was a healthy way for him to scream out his emotions and let it all out. The air was crisp, warm and relaxing as he jumped through it with his baton.
"Man, I could get USED to this!" he let out a relaxed sigh, stopping by a roof vent to lean over and relax. "Just me and the wind!"
He was about to close his eyes to rest when he saw a familiar figure swing by. His eyes lit up, straightening up with a beam.
"AZUL!" he proceeded to run after the ladybug miraculous holder. "Hey, Bugaboo!~"
He followed his partner to the clocktower. He watched the other disappear to the roof and jumped up after him. He landed on the roof with a thud, tail flickering giddily to match his beaming smile.
"Hey there, M'Lady!" he purred with a bow. "How are you this fine afternoon?"
His greeting fell into deaf ears. He looked up to investigate, and his ears drooped at the sight, eyes widening in horror. Azul was leaning against the roof of the tower, holding himself with both arms, his whole body trembling while he tried his hardest not to cry. His eyes were closed, and he looked like he was about to breakdown, murmuring under his breath.
"B-Bugaboo?"
Azul still didn't react. Berde frowned and slowly approached his partner. He held his hand out to reach out for him as he called out again.
"Azul?"
The last call finally snapped the ladybug miraculous holder. His eyes snapped open, and he gasped.
"B-Berde?"
Berde sighed in relief. He went on his knees and slowly reached out for his partner.
"You okay, Azul?" he asked, both hands on the other's shoulder.
"I..." Azul sighed and shuddered. "I'm fine, kitty. Just... have something in my mind, that's all,"
"Really?" Berde moved to sit beside him. "Wow, I... I'm sorry, I didn't---"
"It's fine," Azul waved him off. "It's okay, Berde. Sorry if I alarmed you,"
"It's alright," Berde smiled up at him. "You know, I came out to vent too,"
"Really?" Azul stared at him in surprise. "You?"
"Yep!" Berde sighed. "My best friend and I got into a fight,"
"Ouch," Azul grimaced. "Really? What happened?"
"He... He was being his brash and proud self," Berde hissed. "Usually, I wouldn't mind, but today, he was just being so... grr, so MEAN! It made me go.. argh!"
Azul's eyebrows shot up. "Woah. What did he do to make you mad so much?"
"He called us wanna-bes," Berde growled. "He INSULTED us when we worked SO hard to fight that akuma!"
"Oh shoot, really?" Azul felt nostalgia for a moment before shaking his head. "Your best friend's an idiot,"
"A real pain in the ass, but," Berde let out a sigh. "he's still my best friend. I don't wanna give him up. How about you?"
"Kinda the same," Azul turned away and hugged himself again. "Not really a fight, but I said something that hurt him. Everyone else got involved, and they insulted me, mocking me that I'd never be a great hero and that I'm just dreaming for the impossible,"
THAT got Berde's attention. He shot up and turned to him in shock.
"WHAT?!" he clenched his fists and growled. "How DARE they insult you like that?!"
"It's at my civilian self," Azul told him. "I'm not exactly... athletic as an ordinary being,"
"Still," Berde huffed. "Anyone and everyone can be heroes,"
"Berde, please," Azul shook his head. "Do you know what's worse?"
"There isn't anything worse than tha---"
"My best friend turned on me,"
Berde clamped his mouth shut, eyes wide and caught off-guard. Apparently, he was wrong.
"What do you... how?"
"Usually, he'd side with me," Azul said. "He'd always see the bright side to whatever I was doing and side with me. Today, however, he said nothing to defend me. He did nothing to defend me. He just watched me leave while I tried to hide my hurt,"
"Oh god," Berde had to hold himself back from growling and snarling. "I know my best friend was an idiot, but yours is a complete ass!"
"First of all, language. Second, it's fine," Azul waved him off and laid back. "I'm fine, Berde. I just... need air to breathe, okay? And some space away from those idiots,"
"Good idea," Berde chuckled. "May I... keep you company?"
"You're already here," Azul giggled. "It would be rude to turn you away,"
Berde's eyes lit up. He sat back and leaned gently against the other, head slowly falling on his partner's shoulder. Azul was surprised, but he didn't turn away or push him off. He simply smiled wider and leaned his head on the other, closing his eyes to relax.
Being a superhero had it's hardwork, but at least, they had this time... to relax.
X
X
X
"See ya tomorrow at the race, Darry,"
"See ya, Ez. Take care of him, Longg," Darington waved as he headed to the door. "And tell Crush that I apologize in behalf of my friends for everything they said,"
"Yeah, yeah, I will," Ezra nodded and waved his brother off.
"And I will care for my queen," Longg gave a bow.
As soon as the stunt truck left, the blunet heard a murmur from his eldest brother's room, followed by sparkling magic of detransformation. He let out a sigh.
"Longg, I already brought out some food for you and Tikki. Why don't you start up on your dinner?"
"As you wish, my queen," Longg nodded. "You will eat as well, right? Your brother wishes for you to be well, and it is my duty to care for you as you care for me,"
"I will, when Crusher joins me," Ezra told him with a smile. "Now go. I'll send Tikki out later,"
Longg gave a nod before flying off to the kitchen. Ezra sighed and walked over to his big brother's room. He knocked on the door gently.
"Crush? You there?"
"Mm-hmm," the muffled yet calmer voice of his brother came from inside, and the door opened to reveal the dark blue truck, who looked a little better than earlier. "I'm here, I'm here,"
"That's good," Ezra turned to Tikki, who was floating beside the other. "Tikki, you should join Longg on your dinner. Big bro and I need to talk,"
"Okay," Tikki nodded then flew off, leaving the brothers alone.
A tense silence came between them as the kwami left. Crusher stared down on the ground, twiddling with his tires. Ezra had his arms folded, but his eyes were also on the ground. Both brothers refused to look at each other, hesitant to either start a conversation, any conversation, really, or bring up the issue and let it slide as soon as it was discussed.
Well, IF one of them was gonna bring it up to discuss it.
"Crush," Ezra finally sighed, leaning against the wall. "if hiding you secret identity by talking yourself down is your way to hide then I think we should reconsider Dad turning down the therapist,"
"I... I was just telling the truth," Crusher let out a shaky breath. "I'm no hero, and neither you nor Berde can change my mind,"
"Ah, Berde was on a patrol with you?" Ezra grinned. "How romantic!"
"Ez, I only met him," Crusher reasoned out. "And you know that I already have a crush, and... and despite what happened today, my feelings haven't changed,"
"Apparently so," Ezra shook his head. "Come on, big guy, let's go get some dinner with the kwamis,"
"Okay," Crusher smiled.
They headed to the kitchen to get something to eat. Longg and Tikki were already munching on their own food, leaving the two to eat the dinner that Ezra and Darington made while chatting earlier. As they did, Ezra looked up at the other before clearing his throat.
"Darington wants to apologize in behalf of his friends,"
"Wish it worked that way," Crusher grumbled. "Starla, Watts, Stripes and Zeg were the ones to speak out. If they really want an apology then they'll say it themselves,"
"Fair," Ezra chuckled and took out his phone to message their brother.
The sooner solved this, the better.
X
X
X
Pickle leaned back against the tree with a sigh. He had arrived at the park earlier that morning, right before sunrise, sleepless from the thoughts that lingered around him the other day.
He and Azul Bug has stayed on the roof until sunset. Azul had to head home and left him in the tower. It gave him the chance to think about everything they talked about.
If he was honest, he thought that Azul's civilian best friend and him were beginning to sound alike. He had argued with Crusher, something that they had tried to avoid, and when the other monster machines joined in and had said some... mean things to his best friend to defend Azul Bug and Chat Berde, he didn't do anything.
He didn't defend HIM, his best friend for as long as he could remember. Sure, what Crusher said was equally mean, but what he had said was to AZUL BUG AND CHAT BERDE, not to them. It wasn't right for them to insult him when he hadn't said anything about them (yet).
It made him feel guilty, and that guilt made his stomach churn and curl up. That guilt refused to make him sleep, so he decided to leave.
And no, he didn't take Plagg with him because he knew that the kwami was gonna make him feel guiltier than he already felt.
"Hey,"
Pickle froze at the voice that knocked him out from his thoughts. He turned to find himself facing the dark blue truck. He had a soft, shy smile on his face, an expression that he rarely showed and would mostly show to his family than to anyone else as he drove towards him, slowly and hesitantly.
"Oh," the green truck felt the guilt hit him again as he turned away. "What brings you here so early?"
"Insomnia,"
Right. Pickle forgot about that. Apparently, Crusher and his adoptive family all had insomnia. Crusher could sleep when it's usually light out since he loved the darkness, like a nocturnal animal, but those were rare times. Crusher barely sleeps. He mostly races through late night races to keep himself occupied all through the night.
It was a miracle that the dark blue truck was still able to go around in the day time and race. Then again, Darington could still do stunts, so he guessed that it would make sense.
"O-Oh! Right..." Pickle cleared his throat.
"So..." Crusher gulped, trying to find the right words to say. "what brings you out here so early?"
"Um..." Pickle bit his bottom lip. "guilt?"
"What?" Crusher was confused, tilting his head. "On what?"
"I..." Pickle sighed. "Our fight. Sorry, I... I don't know why I took our fight yesterday so seriously,"
"I insulted Azul Bug first," Crusher admitted.
"Doesn't mean I should've reacted like that," Pickle shrugged. "You've insulted Blaze and AJ before. I... I just felt so defensive since the superheroes are risking their lives to save ours,"
"Never thought of it that way," Crusher chuckled as he was close to the other. "This spot taken?"
"Nope, go ahead," Pickle smiled and moved over to let the other drive by him.
The stayed there, under the tree, staring at the sunrise. Pickle felt nostalgic, as did Crusher, neither of them knowing each other's feelings as they watched the beautiful view in front of them, like how their alter egos watched the sunset the say before...