At the Polendina home, Pinocchio just sat in front of his plate of food not so much as touching it as Lucy sat across from him. 

“Ya really should eat that, ya know? Growin’ boy like yerself needs his strength.” she commented. 

“... I should be out there helping save my father...” Pinocchio sighed. 

“There, there. I know how ya feel. I’ve lost count of all the times I had to wait on Ed to come back home while feelin’ like I should’ve done more.” Lucy patted his hand. 

“No. You really don’t... Do you know why I’m like this?” he gestured to his face. 

Lucy rubbed her hands together “It wouldn’t be very ladylike of me to ask a person why they look the way they do.” 

“Fair enough. I’m like this because I waited for my mother to come to me instead of being more proactive. During a terrible storm, a bolt of lightning hit a tree which caught fire, then fell on our house, and the flames spread to our house. I waited in my room while mother, and I called out to each other, but.... everything went black. When I woke up, I was told that she never made it. I think you can guess how it left me.” Pinocchio looked down at his hands “Everytime I look at my limbs and my face... I’m reminded of how mother didn’t make it.” 

“I’m so sorry ya went through that, but there ain’t anyone can do against a fire and that includes grown-ups. Ya can’t blame yerself and I don’t think yer mother would’ve wanted ya to, Pinocchio.” Lucy rubbed his back sympathetically. 

Pinocchio thinks for a moment “Ms. Harris, I’m not really hungry, but may I please have a cup of tea?” 

“Of course, darlin’.” she nodded. 

Lucy went into the kitchen and was in the process of filling the kettle with water while Pinocchio tiptoed up to the door and quietly closed it, then locked it with a noticeable click. 

“Hey!” she dropped the pot while running to the door attempting to open it “Pinocchio! This ain’t no way to treat a lady! Ya open this door this minute, mister! Pinocchio! PINOCCHIO!!” 

Dr. Vice was walking down the alley while holding a page and up above the rooftops, Hyde was watching her like a hawk with Robert beside him as she entered the meeting place. She arrives at the exact spot and a redheaded man with a polished appearance walks over. 

“Do you have it?” the redhead asked. 

“Yes. Where is the professor?” she demanded. 

“He’s just fine and he will remain that way if you just hand over the plans, madam.”  the man smirked. 

“Will you free him if I do?” she glared. 

“The plans, madam?” he repeated cooly which annoyed her even more. 

“Here. Now, where if Prof. Polendina?” she glared while holding the back protectively. 

“Come with me, madam.” the redhead gestured. 

“Come with you?! You said THIS was the meeting point!” Vice shouted. 

“Yes. It is the MEETING point. The exchange point is elsewhere. So please, come with me.” he led her to a carriage with a scruffy looking driver with a wiry looking moustache. 

Vice flashed a glare at him while following while taking one moment to look up at Hyde discreetly. Once in the carriage, it immediately drove away with Hyde following in hot pursuit up the rooftops. It stopped near the densely wooded park where they all got off and went into the park. After a few moments, Hyde continued to follow them though now on the ground on foot. The redheaded man with the scruffy man led Vice to the middle of the park where Prof. Polendina was tied to a chair with his mouth gagged. 

Upon seeing her, he immediately reacted while she looked at the men “If you did anything to him-” 

“He’s fine. We even gave him a chair to sit on to make sure he doesn’t strain that broken leg of his. Now... the plans.” he held out his hand. 

Vice walked over and handed the bag to him. He then handed it to his scruffy cohort who opened and took out the papers. The two men nodded at each other before the redheaded pulled out a gun and pointed it at Vice while the scruffy man tore up the papers. 

“Alright, Mr. Hyde! Come on out and join us or else Dr. Vice here will be joining the angels!” he called out smirking. 

“Why you bloody scum! I knew you’d play bloody dirty!” Hyde showed himself while cracking his knuckles. 

“My dear troll, we suspected that you would try to play the same trick on us as you did Lord Savage. With that said, the game never was to exchange plans for the professor’s freedom. After all, we have the professor himself meaning we don’t need the plans. He carries them with it in that genius brain of his along with other brilliant ideas waiting to be hatched.” the redhead laughed. 

Before Hyde could react to anything, he felt something hit his jaw hard and fast almost knockin him off his feet. It was a large burly human-troll hybrid of a man with a curled moustache with an expression indicating that he was out for blood. 

“Mr. Hyde, meet Mr. Mangiafoco. Mr, Mangiafoco, Mr. Hyde. An underground boxer turned hitman. In short, he’s here to kill you, Mr. Hyde. In the most brutal, bloody and painful way possible as per his employer’s orders. THIS was the real game. To lure you out and end you.” the redhead explained, then turned his attention back to the lady doctor “And you, Dr. Vice. My employer doesn’t appreciate loose ends or former employees who show no grace. Not to worry, you end will be much swifter.” 

He clicked the gun and aimed just before Pinocchio leapt out of hiding and tackled the man ruining his shot and causing him to drop the gun while also knocking over the other man in the process. The boy got up quickly and kicked the gun towards Vice who picked it up and aimed at the men and then ran to his father. 

Pinocchio took the gag off Gheppetto’s mouth “Pinocchio, you shouldn’t be here!” 

“You, the brute! Leave Hyde alone of I’ll shoot!” she threatened. 

The redhead got up looking annoyed, but calm while his cohort just hissed “Take your best shot, madam.” 

The redhead revealed himself to be a fox type beastman who morphed before her and the scruffy man was also a beastman though a cat type. 

“You deal with the pesky boy.” the foxman instructed him. 

“RUN, PINOCCHIO!!” Gheppetto hollered and the boy complied as the catman ran after him. 

Meanwhile, Vice was trying to get a proper shot at the foxman, but could not because he was too fast, so she ran in the opposite direction as Hyde brawled it out with Mangiafoco who not above strangling or biting. Robert was torn as he did not know who to assist. 

“Oi, Robert! Go help Pinocchio! He’s just a child!” Hyde commanded and the roc complied. 

“You can’t hide, you know! I can smell you!” the foxman called out while pursuing Vice. 

She tried to shoot him again twice, but he would dodge each time. 

“Persistent, aren’t you?!” he mocked her as he bared his claws “You don’t have many rounds left and trying to hit me is pointless!” 

“You’re right! It is!” she called out before throwing a glass orb filled with white liquid at his feet and then shot at it instead causing it to release a strange white smoke. 

“What is this? Smokescreen? You think that... uh...” the foxman collapsed and reverted to his human form while out cold. 

Vice walked over smirking and took out a flask of some kind of pink liquid with one hand while putting the redhead’s hands behind his back. She poured a certain amount on his wrists shaping it into shackles just before it turned purple and hardened. She then proceeded to do the same with his ankles. 

“Now, to help, Pinocchio.” she then ran. 

At the other end of the park, Pinocchio was running from the catman, but it was hard as he was running out of breath and the catman had more stamina. In a desperate move, he climbed up a big tree, but this only amused his pursuer. 

“A tree? Really? You’re either desperate or stupid, boy!” the catman cackled before climbing up after him. 

Pinocchio continued to put some distance between himself and him by walking along a branch carefully while holding onto the one above himself. Once he was near the end, he stopped seemingly resigning himself to his situation. 

“Did you really think you could out-climb me let alone outrun me?” the catman made his way towards him. 

Pinocchio just frowned and began to jump hard onto the branch while still holding onto the one above making it shake, but once again, it seemed like it was in vain as the catman easily held on with the claws on his feet and paws. Despite this, Pinocchio continued to jump and press onto the branch. 

“Can’t you see that it’s not working? You can’t out-shake me!” he mocked the boy when suddenly, cracking was heard. 

“I’m not trying to! I’ve already outsmarted you!” Pinocchio called out as he continued to jump on the cracking branch until it bend down and broke off with the catman clinging onto it while yowling. 

Robert finally caught him and took Pinocchio by the shoulders and softly took him to the ground while the disoriented catman hissed and groaned with the branch still on him. The boy then gave him as hard a blow as he could to the head with his wooden forearm knocking him out. That was when Dr. Vice caught up and saw the boy’s handiwork. 

“I told you I can take care of myself.” he stood up triumphantly. 

“Ham.” Robert rolled his green eyes. 

“You got lucky.” she commented while binding the scruffy man’s wrists and ankles with her strange solution “Now, you go call the police. I’ll help, Mr. Hyde.” 

Back where Gheppetto was still bound, Hyde and Mangiafoco continued to brawl with both of them having noticeable bruises. Hyde had a black eye and was missing a fang while Mangiafoco’s upper lip was swollen and his nose was hit hard. 

“Cheater! You’re on some kind of enchanements, aren’t you?!” Hyde growled while wiping his mouth. 

“Hey!” Vice called out while throwing one of her makeshift knockout orbs smashing itright Mangiafoco’s face. 

However, it did nothing. She then hit him two more times, but it did nothing. 

“Don’t you have the bloody gun?!” Hyde pointed out. 

“It’s out of bullets! And I’m out of those things!” she replied. 

Mangiafoco turned back to Hyde though he was slightly swaying indicating that the gas dulled his senses a bit and made him drowsy. 

“Right! Then I’ll put this big oaf to bed myself!” the troll exclaimed as he ran to his opponent, grabbing him by the midsection and then lifting him over his shoulders. 

He then jumped high up and body slammed him hard onto the ground, knocking him unconscious. 

“Done.” Hyde got up and fixed himself as Vice poured a generatous amount of the binding solution on his arms and legs, when Pinocchio returned. 

“Father!” he untied his father and hugged him “I called the police. They’re on their way now.” 

“Pinocchio, I ought to be angry at you, but... I’m just so happy you are alright and that this is all over. Thank you, Mr. Hyde. And you too, Katherine.” 

“How did you get away from Lucy anyway?” Hyde lifted a brow. 

“I uh... tricked her and locked her in the kitchen. I really am sorry for doing that, but I HAD to come and help, father. And the truth is that you did wind up needing my help, Mr. Hyde.” Pinocchio shuffled his foot. 

Hyde pursed his lips “I admit that we did, but next time, leave this to the adults and you WILL atone.” 

“By the way, those weren’t the real plans I brought over, professor. Your real ones are safe with Dr. Jekyll. Anyway, you’d better get out of here, Mr. Hyde. I can stay with the Polendinas.” Dr. Vice told everyone. 

“Do you think anyone will confess about who their “employer” was? As if we don’t know who it was.” Pinocchio scoffed. 

“No, but you and your father are safe. Make sure to stay that way from now on, Pinocchio. You’re luckier than you realize. Now, to go free Lucy.” Hyde lectured before turning away and running off into the night. 

“Behave yoruself, rawk!” Robert swooped after Hyde. 

Two weeks later, Gheppetto was able to give his presentation at the seminar which Dr. Jekyll with Louis on his shoulder, Dr. Vice, Lucy and even Utterson and his wife Camilla attended. The professor presented it while sitting in a mechanical wheelchair with Pinocchio assisting him, and the crowd was amazed by his work on mechanical puppet-like limbs. He got a standing ovation for his work. After the presentation was done, they all went to greet the Polendinas. 

“You were marvelous, Prof. Polendina.” Jekyll smiled at him. 

“Thank you. Madonna, Jekyll! What happened to your face?!” the professor’s eyes widened. 

“Oh... uh... I really nasty fall down the stairs. Not to worry. I have a doctor caring for me.” he put his arm around Vice making her blush. 

“Anyway, I think you stand a good chance to have your work selected for medical science, professor.” Utterson commented. 

“You still stand a chance at being selected by moi, dear professor.” Carew strolled over. 

“Not you again.” Pinocchio grumbled. 

“Aw, come now. Don’t you like me?” Carew looked wounded. 

“No!” Pinocchio shouted at him and then stuck his tongue out him. 

Carew frowned and crossed his arms “Well, I never-” 

“Neither of us like you and we don’t trust you, so my answer is NO until the end of the world to any offer you make and I don’t want to do business with you, so go home and leave us alone!” Gheppetto commanded. 

Carew was taken aback and looked angry, but composed himself while still looking as haughty as ever “Humph. Very well. Perhaps it’s the best this way. Good luck getting anyone to work with you with that barbaric-” 

The upperclassman walked right beside what was supposed to be a printer, but it was glitching and squirted ink all over him from head to toe. 

“Ack! My new clothes!” Carew cried as he looked at his reflection. 

“Awk, black is NOT your colour, sir.” Louis commented which made everyone laugh including Hyde whose reflection could be seen in the mirrored wall.