8:02 A.M. – Mysterious Greenhouse

She raked her gaze across her masterpiece collection, the new plants she had been growing ever since she had escaped that prison of hers.

"Ah, it's coming along perfectly," the woman laughed, stepping out from the shadows and revealing herself as Violet Vanderfleet. "Those who spurned me, those who callously dumped their significant others without any regard for their own feelings... oh, you'll definitely pay for all of it."

After checking specific plants for their effects, Violet eventually came across one that piqued her interest.

"Ooh, I haven't used this one yet," Violet cackled. "And considering those damnable spies will no doubt be coming after me soon, I may as well make use of my new secret weapon."

Violet studied the plant in question, her sadistic grin only widening.

"They really think men actually care about women?" Violet growled. "They really think they appreciate their feelings? Well, I'll show them all what we really think of you."

Violet began laughing like a crazy person, because hey, when you get right down to it, that's what a lot of supervillains are...

(The pages constantly turn, no matter how long the reader takes. When one story ends, another story will inevitably start. In the end, there is only a new beginning.)

Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger are proud to present:
Totally Spies!: Smiles and Tears
Story Rated: T for Teen
Story Created: February 28th, 2020

Story Summary: The ninth joint project between Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger, collectively known as Totally Spies: The New Adventures. One seemingly-normal day (noticing a pattern here?) couples in Beverly Hills suddenly begin to break up en masse, leaving the spies to believe something malicious is in the air. And sure enough, it is, as Violet Vanderfleet has returned with another scheme to "ruin men" for their perceived slights against women. However, this time around, the biggest problem the spies face might not actually be Violet, as the strange circumstances could force May to reveal her feelings for Nick. Is she ready to spill the beans, or will Violet's plans throw a wrench into May's plans?

Author's Note from The Blue Time Ranger: And here we go with episode nine of The New Adventures! This is going to be a good one, I assure you, as something we've kinda been sitting on since the end of Shattered Memories, and partially revealed near the end of A Getaway Gone Wrong, is gonna be the focal point of today's adventure. ALSO: many, MANY thanks to user jettmanas for making a book cover for "Secrets Near and Dear"! You rock, dude!

Author's Note from Mat49324: This 9th project is going to be a good one. BTW, I have already posted my oneshot "Aqua Spies", so if you get a chance, be sure to see that on my page.

And Now, the Obligatory Disclaimer: Mat49324 and The Blue Time Ranger do not own anything related to Totally Spies or any of its affiliations. It belongs solely to Marathon Media Group, Image Entertainment Corporation, Vincent Chalvon-Demersay, and David Michel. The only things of this story we DO own are any characters created by us truly for the story (in this case, Nick, Haruka, Bridget, May, Nozomi, Dawn, and Melissa on my side, and Mathew on his side). Any characters or things we don't own, we are just borrowing with no intent of copyright infringement, only for the entertainment of our readers. Besides, if we did own Totally Spies, which we don't, why would we be writing fiction on a fan site?

Episode 1: A Revolving Door of Feelings

6:35 A.M. – The Spies' Beach House

It just wouldn't stop.

The constant, unending noise keeping her trapped in this maddening limbo...

May finally decided she'd had enough.

With one swift punch, her alarm clock went flying across the room until it collided with the opposite wall with a loud CRUNCH, finally silencing its incessant blaring.

Knowing there was really no point in going back to sleep now that her clock had forced her to wake up, May yawned and stretched as she got ready to start her day.

"Seriously, next time we go to the Groove, I'm looking for a better alarm clock," May groaned, still fighting off the throes of sleep. "Namely one that doesn't blare a freakin' ambulance siren... seriously, how the heck has this thing not woken anyone else up with its loudness?"

As May went for her closet, she didn't spare her alarm clock a single glance.

To May's surprise, Nick was already awake, sitting down on the couch while flipping through the many (and I mean MANY) channels, just trying to find something to watch.

"Man, early-morning television sucks," Nick groaned.

"Tell me about it," May giggled, plopping herself down on the couch next to Nick. "At least back in Japan, they had some anime playing in the morning, so it wasn't just morning news and talk shows."

"Oh, you're up early for a Saturday, huh?" Nick asked.

"Blame my dumb, INCREDIBLY LOUD alarm clock for that," May sighed. "I swear, I don't know why I still have that antique wailer..."

"You punched it, didn't you?" Nick teased.

"You'd do the same thing in my shoes, Nick," May laughed. "Don't deny it."

"Oh, you got me," Nick proclaimed dramatically, pretending to have been shot by an invisible arrow, only for both Nick and May to start laughing at how silly they were being.

"Hey, May?" Nick quipped.

"What's up?" May wondered.

"Have you decided when you're going to tell everybody?" Nick asked.

May took a couple seconds to think it over. After the spies' mission in Tachikawa, Tokyo, May had fallen in love with Nick thanks to everything he had done to help her after Johnny's death and Millia's rampage. However, knowing that Nick and Alex were already a couple, May had decided to leave those feelings alone until the night of "the getaway that went wrong", in Alex's words, where Haruka had confronted her about those feelings and insisted she at least tell Nick, knowing that he would understand.

Which she finally got the chance to do during their search of the Beverly Hills Hotel, when it had been just her and Nick helping Eri find her mother. And, to her great surprise, Nick had kissed her back, indicating that he shared her feelings in some way.

May had been waiting for the best time to tell the other spies about it so there wouldn't be any misunderstandings or "tizzies", in May's words. She wanted everyone to understand where she was coming from, after all.

"I'm going to tell them later tonight," May answered. "Honestly, the one I'm most worried about telling is Alex, since she's your, you know, girlfriend..."

"Hey, we'll get there when we get there, 'kay?" Nick responded. "And besides, I'm pretty sure she'll be the most understanding about it. I mean, this is Alex we're talking about here, and I'd like to think I know my girlfriend pretty dang well by now."

"Good point," May giggled. "Now, before the others wake up, how about I show you something I found on this TV?"

May quickly snatched the remote and began cycling through the channels in a rapid-fire fashion before eventually landing on what appeared to be a Japanese channel.

"Hold the phone, we get Japan channels on this thing?!" Nick gasped.

"Just a few, but look, look!" May exclaimed. "They've got Pretty Cure on here! Can you believe that?!"

"Wait, is that Splash Star?" Nick responded. "Holy crap, that's awesome!"

"I know, right?" May giggled. "Hold on, I'm gonna go get a bowl of cereal and we can pretend like we're kids again, 'kay?"

"Sounds like a plan to me, May!" Nick laughed.

Nick didn't expect May to come back with a bowl and spoon for him, too – along with her cereal.

"Thanks, May," Nick replied.

The two started to enjoy Pretty Cure together.

"So, Nick, which one do you prefer, Splash Star or the original?" May asked.

"Honestly, that's a toughie," Nick admitted. "Both of them have their own little quirks about them, even if some people think the first half of Splash Star is just a retread of the original."

"Well, I like Saki and Mai more than Nagisa and Honoka, but that's just me," May responded. "I've heard so many fans who say that the originals are the best."

"To be fair, this is, what, only their third season?" Nick answered. "And the OGS have two of those seasons under their belt, so I just think they need to give Saki and Mai more of a chance."

("Perfect" by Ed Sheeran plays)

Meanwhile, in Mat's room, Sam and Mat laid in his bed together. Both were tired from their past mission and extra vacation to Hawaii courtesy of Jerry after their hotel getaway went wrong courtesy of Captain Hayes.

"You make me so happy, Sammy," Mat said in his sleep.

Sam just overheard Mat's statement and grinned.

"You'll always be my girl to the moon and back," Mat continued in his sleep and grabbed Sam in a hug. His head began going for her chest.

"Mat?" Sam stated, trying to get him to wake up. "Oh, Mathew... you wanna..."

That's when Mat did open his eyes and saw he was near Sam's bust. "Oh gosh!" Mat gasped and moved his head off her chest. "Sam, I'm really sorry!"

"No need to apologize," Sam quipped. "I heard what you were saying though."

Mat looked embarrassed and confused. "What'd I say?" he asked, nearly nervous he said something that made Sam upset.

"Nothing to make me leave you or anything, that's for sure," Sam giggled. "I heard you say I'm your girl to the moon and back."

"Did I say that?" Mat asked.

"You totally did, Mat-honey," Sam answered. "And I hope you don't say otherwise."

"Well, if I did," Mat replied. "I meant it 100%."

"Aww, you sweetie," Sam giggled.

In response to Mat's sleep-talk, Sam grabbed his hand and moved her head near Mat's shoulder.

"If there's one good thing that getaway did, it was bring us one notch closer," Mat quipped.

"No disagreements there," Sam giggled and kissed Mat on the cheek. "I love you so much, my sweet Mat."

"I love you, too, my perfect Sammy," Mat replied.

The two lovers snuggled under the covers, looked at each other, and kissed again. They went back to sleep for another hour.

As for Alex, she came downstairs herself for her own breakfast. Clover was right behind her – as were Bridget, Nozomi, and Melissa.

"I know it was a while ago, but I'm already missing Hawaii after the last time," Alex remarked.

"Totally," Clover replied, getting her breakfast. "Mat knows his way around Hawaii; I almost hope we get a mission there."

"Well, I'm not disagreeing there," Melissa quipped.

Haruka came downstairs with Britney and Dawn. Mat and Sam were right behind them with their arms around each other. They parted ways so Mat could get his breakfast – soup – and Sam her OJ from the refrigerator.

"Morning, you lovebirds," Haruka teased at Mat and Sam.

"Wasting no time with that, eh?" Mat laughed.

"I'll say," Sam replied in agreement. "And we hadn't even said thanks for the extra photos you took of us while we were in Hawaii."

"By the way, anybody still with Hawaii withdrawals?" Mat asked.

"We ALL have 'em, Mat!" Clover remarked.

"It figures," Mat laughed. "Hawaii lifestyle can change a person, take it from me."

"Hawaii certainly made Alex happy," Sam stated to Mat. "And me, too. I think I..."

Sam was interrupted when Alex had gone to the den and her voice erupted.

"NICK?!"

That got everyone's attention. When everyone came to the den, Alex had a shocked look on her face when she saw May holding on to Nick after getting a little too excited over what they'd just been watching. All of a sudden, May felt like a deer caught in headlights when she realized it.

"Did... I get a little too excited?" May asked.

"I think so," Nick answered.

"Nick, please don't tell me..." Alex couldn't finish her statement.

"Oh, crapbaskets," May gasped.

Mat was quick to be a peacemaker. Clover came to help, too.

"Get a grip, Alex," Mat remarked. "I'm SURE Nick has a valid explanation unless this is news to him, too..."

"Do you think you should tell them, May?" Nick asked.

May sighed, knowing there was no way out of it now. "Might as well, since the cat's apparently out of the bag," May answered before standing up. "Now, before I start, I want all of you to listen to everything I have to say before you respond. I feel bad enough as it is..."

The other spies nodded, willing to hear May out.

"All right, then..." May stated, glancing at Haruka for a second before starting her explanations. "I'm sure you all remember what happened in Tachikawa. I lost my first crush, someone I really looked up to, and it was hard for me. Now, Nick's been one of my longest friends, and... well, he helped me more than I think even he knows during all of that. He let me grieve for Johnny, he didn't judge me for showing emotion, and he just let me act like I was supposed to."

"Was that... when it started?" Mat asked.

"Well, it wasn't until a while after we got home," May continued. "I know you all saw me kiss Nick on the cheek a couple times out of gratitude for helping me through Johnny's death. But that night, I... thought about why I specifically used a kiss to show my gratitude. That was when... well, that was when I realized I had fallen in love with Nick. But I also knew that I most likely couldn't tell Nick about it, because of what Alex might think. Nick says she's very understanding, but now... now I don't know what to think."

"Did you ever tell Nick, at least?" Nozomi wondered.

"Yeah," May answered. "When our two couples left for the hotel, Haruka kinda caught me in the act and tried to get me to at least tell Nick about my feelings. But... I still didn't want to, because I was still scared that exactly this would happen, regardless if I made any moves or not, WHICH I DIDN'T. I wanna stress that right stat now."

May chanced a glance at Alex, who was still confused. She didn't want to know what that face would change into once her explanation was finished.

"Then, while Nick and I were searching for Captain Hayes, he caught me stuttering about something, and I realized the jig was up. I'd have to tell him. Thankfully, he was very understanding about it, and he said we'd find a time to tell everyone else, considering we were still fighting Captain Hayes at the time."

May glanced back at the TV. "The reason I was holding onto Nick there was... well, I got a little over-excited at an anime we were watching, and that's really it."

May was already feeling guilty as it was; her worst fear as a "third wheel" likely coming true.

"Thanks for having my back, bro," Nick stated to Mat.

"Now, Alex," Haruka responded. "Nick's right, it isn't what it looks like!"

Melissa and Dawn (as family) stood by Nick, too.

"We know Nick well enough to know he'd never cheat on you with May, Alex," Melissa stated.

"It happened before a game of Brawl, Alex," Dawn added.

"I was the first to figure this out," Haruka spoke up.

"Why am I the last one to find this out?!" Alex complained.

"Alex, I was first to find out, but that was the day you and Sam won that botched hotel getaway," Haruka reminded.

"So it was recent?" Sam asked.

"That's right," Nozomi replied.

"Believe me, Alex," Nick stated. "When May admitted her feelings to me on the last mission, I was just as surprised as you are now."

"Alex, keep it together," Britney remarked, hoping Alex wouldn't storm off.

Before Alex could give her thoughts, the group heard some beeps. Knowing it was Jerry WOOHPing them, Nick reacted fast and put a psychic bubble together that encased all twelve spies.

Jerry, upon seeing his spy group in Nick's psychic bubble, gave a chuckle.

"That WOOHPing isn't gonna work with us today, Jer," Nick remarked.

"Well, I can still commend you on the ESP, Nick," Jerry quipped.

"One thing's for sure, we totally don't have to worry about landing on each other thanks to Nick," Sam quipped.

"Tell me about it," Mat remarked as he grabbed Sam's hand again. "What have we got now, Jer?"

"I called you all here because we have yet another crisis on our hands," Jerry announced, then got his viewscreen working.

"Violet Vanderfleet?!" Sam exclaimed.

"Hold on, are you talking about that crazy chick who tried to use her evil plants to destroy all the men in the world?!" Alex gasped. "What are she and her Poison Ivy ripoffs doing out and about?!"

"It seems that she had escaped from prison before our work on reinforcing it was completed," Jerry answered. "Regardless, it seems as if she is once again trying to 'ruin men', as she would say, by way of her plants releasing spores that have had a... shall we say, strange effect on some people."

Jerry cycled through different video footage W.O.O.H.P. drones had taken of men that had been affected by Violet's spores...

...and most of them had stormed out on their significant others, leaving the women to cry.

"They're... breaking up with them because of the pollen?" Melissa asked.

"It would seem that way," Jerry stated.

Sam and Mat glanced worryingly at each other, as did Nick and Alex, knowing full well what could happen if they got themselves exposed.

"That is your mission today, spies," Jerry proclaimed. "Find Violet and stop her from affecting the entire continent. If you do happen to come across any of this pollen, please send it to me for analysis, so we can come up with an antidote for those who have already been affected."

"Roger that!" Clover exclaimed.

"Has Violet been sighted anywhere nearby?" Dawn asked.

"We're still searching for Violet, but some of her pollen has begun to spread in Beverly Hills, so we would have you check this out and see if anything can be done about it," Jerry explained.

As the spies walked over to GLADIS so they could receive their gadgets for today's mission, Alex sighed in apparent frustration. However, May saw this and looked like her heart was breaking in two again.

"Everything okay, Alex?" Nick asked.

"It's just... how many times do we have to stomp on these baddies before they learn their lesson?" Alex groaned. "It feels like that's been the extent of our missions lately, just taking down our old foes who keep coming back for more..."

"Villains are stubborn, I know," Nick replied. "But we'll teach 'em another lesson, no matter how many times we've gotta stomp 'em. Right?"

"Yep," Alex giggled.

"Oh, and... about May..." Nick asked.

"Hey, don't freak out, okay, Nick?" Alex responded. "I understand where she's coming from, at least. After everything you did for her, how could she not? I guess I just got a little freaked out at the possibility, but I know you, Nick."

A loud sob caught the group's attention, and everyone turned around to see a heartbroken-looking May, having taken Alex's frustrated sigh at another returning villain in a completely different way.

"H-Hey, May, what's the matter?" Mat asked.

"You see?! I knew this was going to happen!" May sobbed, unable to stop her tears now. "This is why I didn't want to say anything!"

"M-May, what's wrong?" Haruka asked.

"What did I say, Haruka?!" May shouted back. "I told you, I freakin' told you, I didn't want Nick and Alex to get into a fight and possibly lose their relationship because I decided to be a third wheel! And that's exactly what happened, isn't it?!"

Before anyone could say something to calm her down, May turned around and sped off, tears falling from her eyes.

"MAY, WAIT!" Nick and Alex shouted at the same time.

"Oh, my," Jerry stated. "What was that all about?"

"Honestly, long story," Nick responded. "One we really don't have time to tell."

Nick turned towards the rest of the group. "Mat, I want you and Sam to lead the group and see what's going on in town," Nick stated to the other spies. "I'll join you as soon as I can."

"And what are you gonna be doing, big bro?" Melissa asked.

"I'm going to go find May," Nick replied. "After everything that just happened, she doesn't need to be alone right now."

"Hey, Nick?" Alex asked. "If you find May, can you please tell her that I'm not actually mad at her? I was just frustrated that another of our rogues' gallery is back, and I think she took it the wrong way."

"After today, I wouldn't blame her for being frazzled," Nick stated. "You all just take care of things in town and I'll join you as soon as I'm able."

"ROGER!" the rest of the spies all proclaimed.

With that, the group set out into the city to accomplish their objectives.

"Okay, this looks pretty nuts," Sam quipped when she noticed a few couples looking like they were arguing with each other. "Think we should investigate?"

"My question is, what the flip is THAT?!" Alex exclaimed when something rounded the corner of the nearby street. It turned out to be a giant mutated tulip plant that was wiggling its disfigured roots and spreading clouds of yellow-ish pollen.

"I think we found one of Violet's 'projects'," Mat proclaimed.

"All right, Sammy, what's the game plan here?" Nozomi asked. "You and Mat are the team leaders right now, right?"

Sam looked back at the mutated plant as it shambled forward, having noticed the spies. "Well, first we should probably figure out how to stop that thing," Sam stated.

"Ooh, me, me! I have an idea!" Alex exclaimed, retrieving a new gadget that looked like an ordinary breath mint. "This is a new gadget Jerry and the peeps just made, the Arctic Blast Breathmint. I just gotta put one in my mouth and blow, and BOOM! Instant ice breath! And since I at least know enough about gardening to know that cold kills plants..."

"Brilliant, Alex!" Sam proclaimed. "I just want to see if I can collect a sample of that pollen for Jerry..."

"Leave that to me," Clover responded, reaching into her Jetpack Backpack and retrieving a small vacuum cleaner-like gadget. "The Insanely Powerful Portable Vacuum should do the trick!"

Clover took aim at the approaching plant monster and activated the suction. "Stand back, everyone!" Clover exclaimed. The rest of the spies stepped a couple feet back as the pollen came flying from the monster plant and was sucked straight into the vacuum's casing.

Once the pollen was all gone, Alex went into action, taking one of the breath mints and doing her thing. After a couple seconds, she charged towards the monster plant, and before it could create any more pollen, Alex blew hard, unleashing a short-range blast of icy breath that completely froze the monster plant into an ice statue.

For good measure, Alex lashed out with a flying kick that shattered the monster plant into several fragments.

"I've seen Biollante and Jumanji," Alex proclaimed. "You honestly think a mutant tulip would scare me?"

"Jerry, we've got some of that pollen for you to analyze," Sam stated as she opened her X-Powder to call Jerry.

"Wonderful as always, spies," Jerry responded. "Keep searching for Violet, and I'll let you know if we need any more samples."

"Roger that," Sam answered. "Okay, everyone, let's keep looking and see if we can find Violet before this gets out of hand."

"Not to get off-track, but I'm really worried about May," Bridget admitted. "Even after everything she admitted, she's still really upset over all this. And I don't think we'd want her to be all by herself when Violet's plants are causing all this chaos."

"I trust Nick," Alex answered immediately. "He's never let his friends down before."

Meanwhile, somewhere else in the city...

Nick raked his gaze across the street, hoping to find some trace of May in all of this chaos of couples arguing and screaming thanks to Violet's mutant plants.

"Come on, May, where are you?" Nick asked nobody in particular as he stopped to blast another mutant plant with a Final Shine Attack before re-establishing his barrier. He'd conjured a short-range psychic barrier around his body to shield himself from the pollen these monsters were unleashing.

After skidding to a stop to make sure no mutant plants were following him, Nick decided to try something he hadn't thought of in his earlier panic. Nick closed his eyes and focused his ESP powers into a sort of "mental radar" (May had coined the term and idea during the spies' search for James in Europe) that he projected outwards around him, enabling him to hear the thoughts of anyone in a five-mile radius.

Nick hoped this would lead him to his missing friend before it was too late.

After a couple of minutes, Nick's radar centered at the Beverly Hills Park.

"Got her," Nick proclaimed as he made a beeline for the park.

It took him several minutes, but Nick finally found May. She was sitting on a bench overlooking the water (Author's Note: reference season 1's "Evil Boyfriend"), and eating an ice cream sundae with a long look on her face.

"May?" Nick asked.

May simply turned her head away, too ashamed to face Nick.

"May, you are not in trouble," Nick emphatically stated. "Alex was NOT upset at you, she was up in arms over Violet Vanderfleet escaping from the WOOHP Containment Facility, because our kind of baddies don't know when to quit."

"How can I believe that?!" May remarked, ceasing from eating her ice cream sundae. "I didn't think Alex would be as upset as she was..."

"Alex wasn't upset," Nick remarked. "She was just surprised, but Mat, Clover, and Britney seemed to stop Alex from possibly getting out of hand. She personally told me she wasn't mad at you; she completely understood your feelings. They were totally legit!"

May finally looked up at him with hope in her eyes.

"For real?" May asked, very teary-eyed.

"For reals real," Nick replied as he sat down next to May. "Would I lie to you, May?"

"I just..." May started, trying to find the right words to say. "This is exactly why I was so worried about saying something... I thought my worst fears were coming true..."

"You just misunderstood why Alex was frustrated," Nick replied. "Wouldn't be the first time you've misunderstood something..."

Despite everything, May managed a smile at that. "Yeah, Johnny always did keep telling me to stop misunderstanding silly things..."

"By the way," Nick stated to May. "How many of those ice cream sundaes have you eaten?"

"This is my second one," May answered. She had eaten about a fourth of it. "It's double chocolate fudge. Still the best flavor, honestly."

"Tell me about it," Nick replied. "Listen, May. We talked about it before we set off to find Violet, and everyone understands. No one's actually mad at you, okay? Especially not Alex. I told you, she's the most understanding of all of us, and I'd like to think I know my girlfriend pretty well. She even wanted me to tell you, straight from her own mouth, that she's not actually mad, just surprised that she was the last person to find out."

"But that just leads into the one question I have left," May answered. "If everyone understands my feelings for you, then... where do we go from here? Does that make me your girlfriend as well, or what? It's really confusing..."

"How about this?" Nick offered. "Once we've put Violet back in the slammer, you, me, and Alex talk about that? We'll see what she thinks of any ideas."

May took a slow bite of her sundae, not wanting to get brain freeze by chowing down too fast, then looked back at Nick, letting out a bright smile. "You've got a deal."

"There's the May I remember," Nick laughed. "Now let's go find our escaped botanist and kick her and her freaky plants where it hurts."

May finally finished off her sundae, and then reached for her X-Powder to don her bright orange spy catsuit. "Ready whenever you are," May proclaimed.

Before Nick could tear off, though, May put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from just running off. As Nick was about to ask what was up, May leaned in and kissed Nick on the cheek.

"Thank you for being so understanding, Nick," May giggled. "I really am the luckiest girl ever to have such an amazing friend. And... well, can I say 'it', if you know what I mean?"

"Might as well, while you've still got the time to, because I have a feeling Violet's going to be taking up the rest of our time until we stomp her down," Nick replied, knowing full well what May wanted to say.

May's smile brightened considerably. "I love you, Nick."

Nick couldn't help but smile himself, pulling May into a brief but fierce hug. "Love you too, May."

With that crisis averted, Nick gave Sam a call to find out their whereabouts.

"We're still at Violet's hideaway," Sam replied.

"Are you guys in trouble?" May asked.

"Not at the moment," Mat replied.

"May, are you okay?" Alex asked. "I was never upset at you."

"I... I guess I wasn't really in the best state of mind after everything that went down back at the house," May admitted. "My mind was going every which way, and I guess it interpreted your frustration at our latest returning baddie as... well, I think you get it now."

"So, are you doing all right now?" Alex wondered.

"Yup!" May replied. "Nick and I just had a talk about things along with a couple ice cream sundaes."

"Oof, you went that route, huh?" Clover teased.

"I only had two," May shot back. "I was hungry!"

"In any case, I can officially say 'crisis averted', so we're suiting up now, and we'll be with you guys ASAP," Nick proclaimed.

With that, Sam closed her X-Powder.

"Glad that's over with," Clover replied.

"I know," Haruka quipped. "May sure reacted in a way I didn't think she would."

"Totally," Alex added. "May's circumstances were completely legitimate."

"I don't think I'd react any different if I were May," Melissa remarked.

"Mm-hmm," Dawn added.

The spy team looked around high and low. Mat was obviously bothered by May's dilemma and got Sam's attention.

"Hey... I hope something like that doesn't happen between us..."

"I'll see to it that it doesn't," Sam told Mat. "Besides, I have a very good feeling you're totally faithful after what we've gone through."

"And we support each other," Mat pointed out. "You told me you support me after my 'Supercross Heartbreak' after all; I support you with the awards you win..."

Mat then grabbed Sam's hand once again tightly.

"We support each other," Sam proclaimed. "And as long as you've got me, we're not going to split. Ever."

"Before or in case you ask, May's reaction scared me, too, babe," Mat added to Sam.

"I found something else, guys!" Bridget proclaimed as she held a spiral notebook.

"Let me see," Sam remarked and came behind Bridget.

Bridget let Sam see for herself.

"These are guy names," Sam proclaimed. "But none of these names are ringing any bells... maybe Jerry might know."

With that, Sam got out her X-Powder and dialed Jerry.

"Hello, spies," Jerry replied as his visage showed.

"Hi, Jer," Sam replied. "Bridget found a clue – it's a spiral notebook with some names written down."

"Let's see..." Jerry stated as he checked his computer. "Oh my, it appears that these are the men of the couples that Viola Vanderfleet is responsible for breaking up."

To show proof, he put up their images on Sam's X-Powder.

"How's she doing it?" asked Bridget.

"That reminds me," Jerry stated. "I have the results of the pollen that Clover sent."

"Well, let's hear it, Jer," Mat remarked.

"It appears to be some kind of hormonal enhancer that drives up feelings of aggression," Jerry explained. "It also seems to imprint false memories that makes the males think that their significant others did something to scorn them. And, from what we've gathered, the pollen only seems to work on men."

"Sounds like something Violet would do," Clover sighed.

"Which means we'll probably need to be on alert so we don't get pollen'd," Alex noted.

"No chance in heck I'm letting that happen," Mat proclaimed, pulling Sam close to him.

"Do you need any more samples, Jerry?" Sam asked.

"Maybe just one more, to make it easier to work on an antidote," Jerry answered.

"Well, that shouldn't be a problem, considering how much of these mutant plants we keep running into," Nozomi groaned.

Before Sam could make a witty retort, a long, slender vine lashed out from nearby and slapped the X-Powder out of Sam's hand.

"What the heck just happened?!" Dawn shouted. "Who did that?!"

"Um... you know what I said earlier about Biollante, right?" Alex shuddered. "I INSTANTLY REGRET EVERYTHING!"

Mat glanced across the street to see what had freaked Alex out so much. It turned out to be yet another mutated plant, only this one was a giant rose with a set of jaws inside its bud and tendrils, as well as many long vines, and finally, a large, fleshy sac surrounded by its overlaying vines.

Riding on the "back" of the creature was Violet Vanderfleet herself.

"I would say 'it's good to see you again', but I don't necessarily think that's the case, you wretched spies," Violet cackled. "It's been far too long since you put me away, and as you can probably tell, I'm hungry for some good old-fashioned revengeance."

"I swear, we're gonna teach you a painful lesson," Alex growled, shifting into a fighting stance. "When we defeat you, you should stay in prison and stop thinking about escaping!"

"Oh, but where would the fun be in that?" Violet laughed as the vines of the Mutant Biollante began to wriggle as if begging to attack. "And, quite to the contrary, spies, I think it's you who's going to be taught a painful lesson!"

The Mutant Biollante actually jumped into the air, high above the spies, and opened its jaws to spew a cloud of Violet's "men ruining" pollen.

"Oh, crapbaskets!" Melissa shouted as the pollen cloud slowly fell towards them.

Mat instinctively hugged Sam close to him, only to stare upwards in surprise when the entire group was covered by a glowing yellow bubble of light that protected them from the pollen cloud.

After that, a burst of icy air was sprayed over the pollen, freezing it over and turning the whole cloud into a small flurry of snowflakes that dissipated harmlessly against the psychic barrier.

"Who dares?!" Violet exclaimed as she landed on the ground, only for the Mutant Biollante to be blasted backwards by a Final Shine Attack from not too far off.

"We dare, you wacko gardener!" May shouted as she and Nick joined the fight.

"Thank you so much for the save, you two," Nozomi proclaimed.

"Always happy to help!" May exclaimed. "Now, where were we?"

"Don't think you've won!" Violet shouted, and the Mutant Biollante began rapidly whipping its tentacles and vines around, preventing any of the spies from getting close to it.

"Did you seriously make a Biollante monster?" Nick taunted as he reached out to snatch Violet in his psychic hold, then push her off of the Mutant Biollante. "I'm kinda done with any kaiju that's not Godzilla. That mechanical Kumonga was enough."

As the Mutant Biollante hobbled towards the spies, May was already attacking again with the Ice Queen Perfume, bathing the Mutant Biollante in icy mist and freezing it completely solid.

"Boo-ya!" Bridget shouted.

However, as Nick charged up another Final Shine Attack to finish it off, the Mutant Biollante suddenly broke free from its icy prison and lashed out with two of its vines, snatching Nick and yanking him right in front of its mouth.

"Say goodbye to your relationship, boy!" Violet cackled as the Mutant Biollante opened up its jaws, once again preparing to spew a cloud of pollen.

"Oh, I don't think so, freak show!" Alex exclaimed, bringing out a Laser Nail File and firing twice to sever the vines holding Nick, thus allowing him to break free. May continued the combination by throwing a Tornado in a Can of Hairspray that quickly exploded and caught the Mutant Biollante up in a spiraling column of wind. When the tornado dissipated and it finally fell back down, Nick unleashed a pulse wave that blasted the Mutant Biollante back towards Violet.

"Sorry, care to try again?" Nick challenged.

"You're just lucky that my baby is still in its experimental phase," Violet growled, hopping back onto the Mutant Biollante as it shambled away to regroup. "You won't be seeing the last of me, you damned spies!"

"Her 'baby'?" Alex gasped before fake gagging. "Okay, let's not bring up those mental images, please..."

"So, Violet's got a kaiju of her own, too?" May quipped. "Ugh, Nick was right, that robot Kumonga was bad enough..."

"Thankfully, it seems like Violet forgot to take all of her pollen with her," Sam stated, kneeling down so she could use her X-Powder to scan a bit of pollen that had been left on the ground during the battle. "I'm gonna send this one to Jerry, too. Hopefully he'll be able to make that antidote soon."

"So, I guess all we can do now is keep sweeping the city and take care of any mutant plants until we find Violet again, huh?" Bridget quipped, activating Sonic Mode.

"Pretty much," Alex stated. "Now let's go do some exterminating!"

"Totally!" Mat exclaimed. "We got a city to save after all!"

"And now that my conundrum is put to bed," May announced. "I have a clear mind, except Nick wants to talk about what you saw, Alex."

Alex willingly agreed and nodded her head.

"By the way," Mat added to Sam. "Do you feel like going on a date of our own after this is all said and done... and if we don't have to be a part of that talk, too? We can go for another walk like after we stopped Professor Genesis."

"That sounds wonderful, Mat," Sam answered. "And you're right in that we should probably let them have their talk when it comes to that."

"I wonder where in Bev Hills Violet's planning to start unleashing her plants," Haruka stated.

"Rules for villains, number twenty," Nick remarked. "Don't tell the good guys where you plan to start trouble."

"Mm-hmm," Alex agreed. "By the way, May, we're glad you're feeling better."

"Thanks, Alex," May remarked as everyone else smiled at her, knowing she felt better.

Thinking a similar thing might happen with Mat, Sam made a mental note to herself to not do what May did... unless Mat really did cross the line, but she knew him better than that.

Nick looked on at Alex, wondering if he should ask Alex out himself.

May jogged over and nudged Nick with her shoulder, knowing exactly what he wanted to say.

"Go on and ask her, silly," May giggled.

Nick smiled as he walked closer to his girlfriend. "Hey, Alex?" Nick asked.

"What's up?" Alex replied.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go out with me sometime, after this is all over?" Nick asked. "It's been a little while since we've had a date of our own."

Alex couldn't help but smile herself as she hugged Nick. "It's a date."

"THERE SHE IS!" Clover shouted.

The spies hid behind a parked car and indeed saw Violet Vanderfleet in the flesh, just about ready to unleash her plants on some couples.

"Anybody getting a sense of déjà vu from Geraldine and Natalie?" Mat quipped.

"No doubt about it," Melissa replied.

"What's the game plan?" Britney asked.

"Simple," Sam quipped. "Not even give her a chance."

"Allow me," Mat stated as he pulled out his Laser Chapstick. "Nothing a good old-fashioned shot can't fix. Hopefully years of Duck Hunt and clay shooting for Nintendo will pay off here..."

Mat took a bit of time to set up a shot; everyone else let him do his thing.

"Here goes nothing..."

It was good timing as Mat fired a shot just as Violet opened her glass container that housed her killer plant. His shot hit the container in the right spot for Violet to lose her grip and have her plant fall into her chest, and send her flat on her back.

"DIRECT HIT!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Nice shot, bro!" Nick exclaimed at Mat and they shared a fist bump.

"YOU WRETCHED SPIES ARE DIRTY!" Violet shouted when she saw them, and the smirk on Mat's face.

Violet's plant shot pollen at them, but the spies were on cue and whipped out their gas masks to keep the pollen and heartbreak away from them, specifically Nick and Mat.

"Come on, spies!" Bridget proclaimed. "Let's take out this insult to the female population!"

"Totally!" Haruka quipped.

"I figured secret agents like you would be above dirty tricks," Violet proclaimed as she rode on her latest killer plant to fight the spies.

"Well, when the villains play dirty, sometimes you've gotta fight dirty back to outwit them," Sam responded.

"And besides, you're not getting rid of our guys!" Alex shouted. "Some of us actually love our boyfriends! You have no right to try and ruin our relationships just because you failed at your own!"

"You seriously don't get it, do you?!" Violet screeched as she and her killer plant drew closer. "All men care about is shacking up with women and then trashing them when they've had their fill! Don't tell me you actually love each other, you pathetic little monsters?!"

Both Sam and Alex would have let loose with an angry retort had Nick not blasted a gigantic hole in Violet's killer plant with an extra-powerful Final Shine Attack.

"I'm going to repeat what I told Geraldine and Natalie when they did the same thing," Nick proclaimed. "Do not trash talk our relationships. Bad things have happened to baddies who've made me angry, especially considering you don't seem to know who I am, Violet."

"Oh, should I?" Violet shot back.

"Um, in case you missed it, I just put a giant hole in your Jumanji ripoff," Nick taunted. "You want me to blast the rest of it into little chunks of soil as well?"

"I won't go down that easily!" Violet shouted, her killer plant continuing to move despite the giant hole in its body, though it moved a lot slower due to the damage.

"You know, Alex, I feel inclined to agree with what you said earlier," Nick quipped. "These bad guys just do not learn from their mistakes. Usually."

"Yeah, like mister deadbeat captain having a super-robot inside his super-robot!" May proclaimed. "That was weird."

As the killer plant slowly shuffled towards them, despite Violet's loud demands to go faster, Nick raised his hands and fired off three psychic blasts to sever the vines of the plant, then two more to fry its legs off, and then he finished with one more Final Shine Attack to completely destroy the plant.

"There," Nick proclaimed. "I tried to warn you."

"D-Do not think this is over!" Violet shouted as she retreated into the distance.

The spies would have immediately given chase had they not heard more screams and shouting from close by.

"Guess we've got some more work to do before we can take Violet down," Dawn sighed.

"Here's hoping Jerry finishes that antidote soon," Mat quipped. "Because it looks like we might need it."

Meanwhile...

Violet, having returned to her greenhouse-slash-laboratory, looked out at the other mutated plants she was still growing.

"I guess I'll have to accelerate my growth cycles," Violet proclaimed. "Wretched spies don't know what they're messing with."

Despite her recent defeat, Violet smiled gleefully, glancing towards the back of the area, where a bunch of Biollante-like monsters similar to the prototype one she'd used earlier were waiting for her.

And then, she looked down at the monitors on the console in front of her, which were displaying the progress on her secret weapon.

"Hopefully I won't need to use this," Violet stated. "But if those spies force my hand... they'll wish they'd never crossed me."

Violet looked back, way behind the other Mutant Biollante plants, towards something much larger, but covered by shadows.

To be continued...

Next time on Totally Spies: Smiles and Tears...

Dawn: Well, this is getting tedious, isn't it?

Nozomi: We're most likely waiting for Violet to show herself so we can wreck whatever her backup's supposed to be.

Nick: If it's her Biollante thing again, just let me at it, and I'll...

Alex: Um, Nick?

Nick: What's wrong, Alex?

Alex: Are my eyes deceiving me, or do I see at least FIFTY OF THOSE KAIJU PLANT THINGS?!

May: Guess Violet must have stepped up production on her killer plantlife.

Sam: We've got some work to do, spies! Let's take down this kaiju army!

Nick: We're definitely gonna be pulling some weeds out on the next episode of Totally Spies: Smiles and Tears, "A Darkening Cloud of Madness"!

May: Sorry, Violet, but you should really accept that we're going to plant our feet in the ground, and... hold on a second. *flips through pages* WHO KEEPS PUTTING THESE LAME-O PUNS INTO MY SCRIPT?!