#punkhauser

“After the disappearance of the Tunisian Diamond a year ago, The museum owners are finally ready to reveal their newest exhibit.” The news lady, Alice Hamilton spoke. “Archaeologists recently found a large topaz in a once forgotten Egyptian tomb. With it’s supposed age and the great condition it was found in, It’s said to be worth nearly 1 billion dollars-”

“HOLY SHIT!!” Jay was sitting in a dorm room eating a snack while watching this news story. He choked on their food and nearly fell off the bed, With Spot running over to make sure he was okay.”

Jay managed to swallow their food and looked over at their dog. “A billion dollars!? Are they serious!?” Spot only wagged his tail in response. “I need to get a better look at this! Maybe I can come up with a heist once I scope out the area. But how am I gonna get closer? The exhibit won’t be officially open for a while-”

Suddenly, Hazel excitedly came into the dorm. “Jay-Jay! I have the most exciting news ever!” Jay looked over at his girlfriend with a smile. “Really? Go on, Tell me!” “Well, Y’know how I wanted to someday cover a big news story?” She began bouncing in place. “Well, The Museum of Natural History and Culture called the news publishers I work with and asked for a private news story about the Egyptian Topaz, And they recommended me for the job!”

Jay ran over and hugged Hazel. “Oh my god, That’s amazing Juni! I’m so happy for you!” Hazel spun around in happiness while still holding Jay, Both now laughing. “They want me to go to the museum tomorrow for an interview with the museum owners.” She then blushed a bit. “So I was wondering, Would you like to come with me? We’ve both been really busy lately and I think it’d be fun to have a day where it’s just the two of us, Kinda like a date.”

Jay perked up at that. Not only would they be able to spend the day with Hazel, But he’d also be able to scope out the new exhibit. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world!” Hazel kissed Jay’s cheek a few times. “Thank you! Thank you! You’ve just made tomorrow the best day ever!”

Early that next morning, While Hazel was still asleep, Jay called Sven and made him aware that he would be scoping out the topaz exhibit with the hopes of being able to plan a future heist afterwards. Then they got ready for their day out.

Jay and Hazel soon went into the museum, Pointing out a few motorcycles that drove by. The two then went into the in progress Egyptian artifact exhibit, With the topaz being center stage. “Whoa…” Jay looked at it in awe. “It’s even more wonderful up close!” Hazel spoke before taking a picture. “It’s amazing how thousands of years haven’t affected its beauty!”

“I see you’re impressed too.” One of the museum owners walked over to them. “You must be Hazel Juniper, Our journalist for the day.” Hazel went over and shook his hand. “Right sir! I’m gonna be performing some interviews today, If that’s alright with you.” “Of course! I’ll be happy to answer any questions you have.” The owner smiled.

Hazel pulled out her signature notepad and began asking questions, Which the owner happily answered. Jay scoped out the exhibit room for about half an hour until he heard a sound. “Psst…” They looked over and saw Scottie outside of the exhibit room. Jay made sure Hazel and the owner weren’t paying attention before going over to them. “What’s up?”

“Meet me in the bathroom in five minutes.” Scottie whispered. “It’s urgent.” Jay looked back at Hazel before reluctantly nodding in agreement. “Alright. I hope this is important…”

Jay went back over to Hazel. “Hey, I’m gonna go look around the gift shop.” “Oh, Go right ahead. I’ll meet you there after I’m done.” Jay left as Hazel asked her last question. “So, Are you worried about criminals like the Toppat Clan stealing this topaz? It’s only been a year since the Tunisain Diamond was stolen.” She noticed a shift in the owner’s expression.

“Oh you don’t need to worry about that.” He waved the question off. “The security will be doubled by the time the exhibit is ready to open. Nobody will be stealing it.” Hazel wrote down some notes before glancing over at the restroom door and freezing.

She saw Scottie looking around before seeing her. They glared, Pointing two fingers at their eyes, Pointed them at her, and went into the restroom. Hazel remembered her last encounter with Scottie, Learning their role in the Toppat clan. She quickly cleared her throat and faced the museum owner again.

“Well, I think that’s all the questions I have for today. Thank you for your time.” “It was absolutely no problem.” The owner shook her hand. “And if you need me for any reason at all, Don’t be afraid to visit my office.” Hazel smiled and waved as he went back towards his office.

Once he left, She quickly put her notepad in her jacket and tightened her ponytail. “Sorry Jay… I’m afraid the gift shop will have to wait.” She went behind the topaz and crouched down, Effectively hiding herself. The Toppats were up to something, And she was gonna figure out what.

When Scottie entered the bathroom, They were surprised to already see Jay in there. “Huh, You’re a minute early.” “I didn’t wanna seem suspicious.” Jay explained. “Now what exactly did you want? I was spending time with my girlfriend.” “Y’know how you were hoping to plan a future heist after scoping the exhibit out? Well, That heist is gonna have to be now.”

“W-What!? But why!?” “Turns out the Cycle Punks already beat us here.” Scottie explained. “If we don’t get this topaz out now, They’re gonna get their grubby hands on it.” “But I can’t plan a heist on such short notice-” Jay began before Scottie interrupted. “Some other Toppats already came up with what to do on the outside. We just need confirmation on what to do once we get into the exhibit room.”

Jay thought for a second. “The topaz is guarded by plexiglass, So shattering it is out of the question. But if you can somehow bypass that, There’s an easy escape using the fire exit in the former Tunisian artifact exhibit room next door.” 

“Perfect.” Scottie pulled out a communication device and spoke into it. “Make sure the security footage is hacked. Send Ulle in to deal with the guards. And make sure those Punks don’t even think about coming in!” They then hung up. “Now what?” Jay asked. “Now.” Scottie hummed. “We wait.”

Outside of the museum, Ulle stood at the entrance in casual clothing. She cleared her throat before walking in. “Hello ma’am.” A guard greeted her. “Is there any specific exhibit you’re interested in today?” “Oh! I was hoping to see the Egyptian artifact exhibit.” She answered with a smile. “We’re terribly sorry. But that exhibit won’t be open until next month. Perhaps we could show you some of our other fine exhibits?”

Ulle’s smile got toothier. “Actually, I’d like to sing a little song for you guys~”

Back in the restroom, Jay and Scottie waited patiently. After a few minutes, Ulle busted into the bathroom, Holding some trash bags. “I took care of the guards for you guys!” Jay looked at the bags in disgust. “Are they…” “Hm?” She looked at the bags she was holding and giggled. “Oh no no no! That would’ve been way too messy! I just sang them a little lullaby, Poor guys fell right asleep! The bags are for our clothes and weapons.”

She put the bags on the ground. Jay and Scottie looked in them and saw that their clothes and weapons were indeed in there. “Topbot and Burt should be taking care of the footage as we speak.” She hummed. “And the Cycle Punks are nowhere to be seen.” “Then that makes our job easier.” Scottie pulled a butcher knife from their bag. Jay just sighed, How was he gonna explain to Hazel where he ran off to..?

Speaking of Hazel, She was still hiding behind the topaz. She was beginning to get anxious, When were the Toppats gonna strike. As if on cue, Three people wearing top hats entered. Hazel quietly peeked out. 

“Hey, Didn’t you say you were here with your girlfriend?” The one wearing a music note top hat asked. “Yeah, I saw her earlier.” The one wearing a chef hat/top hat combo muttered. “Where did she go?” “She probably just went to the gift shop.” The one wearing a purple top hat answered. “Don’t worry about her, Okay? She won’t get in the way.”

Hazel got a closer look at the one wearing the purple top hat and seemed to recognise them.

“Jay..!?”

As quickly as Hazel said that, A knife was thrown in her direction. She quickly avoided it, Causing it to hit the nearby wall. “I told you to never get involved with Toppat business again Juniper.” Scottie walked over and practically yanked her out of her hiding spot. “But you just couldn’t listen could you?”

“Hey, Leave her alone-” Jay then saw Hazel looking directly at him and froze. They couldn’t read her expression. Was it anger, shock, betrayal? He felt like a deer caught in the headlights, Unable to move, Unable to say anything.

Finally, Hazel was the first one to speak. “You’re… You’re a Toppat..?” Her voice threatened to break then and there. “H-How-”

And as if things couldn’t get any “better”, A sudden explosion blew a hole in the wall nearby. The group turned and saw three Cycle Punks enter through the hole

“We could’ve just walked in the fire exit y’know…” Erin muttered. “The explosion was more fun.” Punkhauser shrugged. “Nevermind that.” Tara huffed. “Let’s just grab the topaz before those Toppats-” She saw the small group already there. “Well… This is awkward…”

“When did you guys get here!?” Ulle gasped. “About two hours ago.” Erin shrugged. “Which means we were here first! That topaz is ours!” “Over our dead bodies!” Scottie growled before pulling out two butcher knives. “We did not come up with a heist on the spot just for you punks to ruin shit!”

Ulle and Scottie began arguing with the Cycle Punks (With Jay still too shocked to move and Hazel trying to get answers) and it was clear that a battle was about to start.

“FREEZE!!” The two groups froze hearing the sudden loud voice. A bunch of government soldiers busted into the room. “Attention all Toppats and Cycle Punks! You’re under arrest for the attempted robbery of the Egyptian Topaz!"

Tara and Scottie glanced at each other. “Temporary truce?” Tara asked. “Temporary truce.” Scottie nodded in agreement. Scottie pulled out their pepper grinder and Tara turned on the gauntlets on her hands, Which glowed pink. The two began attacking the soldiers, With both groups following suit.

Hazel quickly realized that she was in way over her head. So she grabbed Jay and hid back behind the topaz’s stand. Jay got over the shock of what just happened, But they began to hyperventilate. “Oh god, I’m so sorry! None of this was supposed to happen! I wanted to tell you, But I didn’t want you to be in danger and-”

Hazel carefully held Jay’s hands. “Hey hey, Take some deep breaths.” She guided Jay through some deep breathing. “Can you listen to me Jay?” Jay nodded, Tears falling down his face. “Alright. We can worry about all that later, Okay? Right now, We need to focus on getting out of here.” Hazel leaned Jay against her and began carefully walking towards the room’s exit.

Meanwhile, Ulle was using her Meteor Shower attack on several soldiers while Scottie shot at them with their pepper grinder. Tara was punching a few soldiers with her gauntlets before looking over at Scottie. “Hey, You’re doing pretty good!” Scottie blushed at the compliment. “Uh, Thanks. You’re doing good too.”

Out of the corner of their eye, They saw a bullet firing straight towards Tara. “LOOK OUT!!” Scottie ran right in front of her, Causing the bullet to hit their side, Falling onto the ground unconscious. “SCOTTIE!” Tara punched the soldier who fired at them before kneeling down to inspect the wound. “O-Oh god! Scottie, Please! You’ve gotta wake up!” She also looked over at Erin and Punkhauser, Who were beginning to struggle. “No no… This is really bad..!”

Ulle’s voice was beginning to strain from her attacks. Suddenly, A soldier hit her against a wall, Causing her head to bleed. “End of the line Toppat!” Ulle tried to sing, But her voice had died out from the usage. She shook as she realized she was completely cornered.

Jay and Hazel were almost at the exit when they were suddenly stopped by some soldiers. “Ma’am, We’re gonna need you to step away from that Toppat so we can take them into custody.” Hazel wrapped her arms around Jay. “You ain’t taking him anywhere!”

Jay looked around at the battle going on around them, Seeing that his friends were hurt, Seeing Hazel arguing with the soldiers. His head began to hurt, He couldn’t take it anymore.

Their eyes suddenly glowed blue. An explosion of fire escaped him, Causing both Hazel and the soldiers to be knocked back. The blue fox came out, Which Hazel looked at in awe. The fox threw the soldiers to the side before running towards the battle.

The fox was completely relentless. It first disposed of the soldiers attacking Erin and Punkhauser. It then jumped in front of Ulle and roared at the soldiers attacking her, Scaring them off. Finally, It breathed fire at the group of soldiers coming towards Scottie and Tara. Any remaining soldiers retreated, Not wanting to fight this terrifying new threat.

It was like watching a trainwreck, Hazel couldn’t look away from the chaos the blue fox was causing. She finally glanced over at Jay, Who was standing with an emotionless expression. She quickly stood up and ran over to them. “Jay! Are you alright!?” Jay didn’t answer, He kept the same expression with tears streaming down their face.

“J-Jay? C’mon, Snap out of it!” Tears fell down her face. Jay looked over at her, Voice echoing. “Hazel..?” His eyes stopped glowing and he nearly fell over. Hazel caught them and realized they fell unconscious. The blue fox disappeared shortly afterwards.

Tara and Ulle quickly leaned Scottie against them, Walking them towards where Jay and Hazel were. Erin and Punkhauser followed after. “Hazel, Are you okay?” Tara asked. “Y-Yeah I- Wait, You’re a Cycle Punk!?” Tara nervously laughed. “Y-yeah… Sorry…” “Nevermind, We can talk about that once we get back to our dorm! Right now, Jay passed out and Scottie got shot!” 

“Ulle’s voice is completely fried too..” Tara added. “And that’s not even mentioning Erin and Punkhauser’s injuries…” “Hey, We’re fine!” Punkhauser insisted before wincing in pain. “Yeah… Completely fine…” Erin sarcastically replied.