The rumbling of the earth shook Buster out of his trance. "Huh? What's going
on?"
"Don't ask questions," said Arthur, grabbing him by the arm. "Just run!"
The six kids ran down the sidewalk as quickly as they could, while all around them the asphalt and concrete started to fracture...
...until finally the rumbling stopped, and was replaced by an other-worldly, almost musical, deafening whine.
Rocks and chunks of asphalt pelted the kids...then an enormous shadow fell over them. They stopped and turned together.
Several seconds passed before the gigantic object ascended sufficiently that they could make out its shape. Round and metallic, with rings of flashing lights, it easily fit the popular image of a flying saucer.
The residents of the street started to walk out of their homes and point into the sky in wonder and horror.
The space vehicle continued to rise until it was roughly the diameter of a medium-sized pizza.
Buster started to chew his fingernails. "Sue Ellen sure knows how to get around," he muttered.
Francine looked at the other kids. "Don't tell me none of you brought a camera," she said hotly.
As the crowd on the street watched, the bottom of the space vehicle began to shine with a variety of colors. They soon formed into a projected image... the face of Sue Ellen, her hair puffs partially cut off by the edges of the spaceship.
She began to speak, and her voice was audible throughout the entire city...
"Maybe I should have mentioned that Earth has been marked for destruction. I had hoped to contribute a few fledgling humans to the interplanetary wildlife preserve, but since you refused to cooperate, I'll just have to incinerate you all."
The kids stared up speechlessly at the transmission, wondering what unspeakable fate would befall their planet.
"Is it getting hot," said Binky, "or is it just..."
"Shut up," Fern snapped.
Then, before they knew what had happened, the image of Sue Ellen on the spacecraft faded out...
...to be replaced by the image of another familiar face...
"It's Brain!" cried Arthur.
Indeed, Sue Ellen's evil grin had been replaced by the friendly smile of their favorite smart boy.
"We interrupt the destruction of Earth for this important message," boomed the voice of The Brain. "Don't give up on the fashion model thing, Muffy."
Muffy/Brain blinked unbelievingly. "So that's where he was all day...hiding out on the spaceship! He must have witnessed the destruction of the planet."
Suddenly the image of Brain blinked out, and Sue Ellen's face returned, this time with an angry, frightened scowl.
"Stop! Don't push that button! AAAAAARGH..."
There was a blinding flash of light...
...followed seconds later by a thundering roar...
...and where the flying saucer had been a second earlier, there was an enormous cloud of fire, smoke, and flying chunks of metal.
The kids looked at each other, confused and speechless.
Arthur was the first to gather enough courage to speak. "He sacrificed himself to save his planet," he said quietly. "It was a good death."
Muffy/Brain's eyes welled up with tears. "He's...gone," she managed to say.
Francine put a comforting arm around her shoulder. "We all feel his loss, Muffy."
"I'm not Muffy!" wailed Muffy/Brain, tears gushing from her eyes. "Didn't you see what happened? My body has been blown to bits! Now I'm doomed to be a girl forever!"
"We can help you," said Francine kindly.
Muffy/Brain tore away from Francine and sank to her knees, weeping. "I don't want to be a girl anymore! I don't want to!"
"Why not?" asked Mrs. Crosswire.
"I don't...I don't...." Her eyes still tightly closed, Muffy thrashed about on her water bed.
"Wake up, honey," chirped her mother. "It's just a dream."
"I don't want to be a girl," Muffy mumbled deliriously.
"You don't really mean that," said Mrs. Crosswire as she rubbed Muffy's forehead. "We'd have to take back all your clothes."
Muffy's eyes sprang open. She looked around the room and gasped. "M-mom?"
"Right here, honey," said her mother.
Muffy sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Oh, Mom, I had the most intense nightmare!"
"Tell me about it."
"I dreamed that The Br...that a boy was inside my body, controlling me. I did all kinds of crazy things."
"So that's why you said you didn't want to be a girl," said Muffy's mother.
"Yeah, Mom," said Muffy as she started to climb down from the water bed. "It was the boy in my body saying that. Honestly, I can't see why any boy wouldn't want to be me. I mean, who cares what the plumbing looks like when the house itself is so beautiful?"
Muffy stepped in front of the full-length mirror and regarded her reflection. She was once again dressed in a white nightgown, and her hair was disordered and tangled. She smiled. "It's good to be me again."
----
At roughly the same time, The Brain hopped into the kitchen of the Powers home, dressed in his usual blue pajamas. His mother was standing over the range, preparing some hot cereal.
"Morning, Alan," she said.
"Morning, Mom," said Brain happily. "I dreamed I saved the world again."
"Oh, really."
Brain sat down at the table and grinned. "Yeah. Sue...I mean, there was this alien, and it was going to blow up the Earth, but I pushed the self-destruct button, and saved the planet at the cost of my own life."
"How noble," said Mrs. Powers as she placed a bowl of hot cereal in front of Brain.
"I can't wait to tell my friends about my dream," said Brain as he sprinkled some brown sugar over his cereal. "It was really cool. I think I was a girl for part of it."
"Sounds interesting," said his mother. "Write it down before you forget it."
----
That evening, Brain and Muffy were once again examining the African knick-knacks in Sue Ellen's private collection.
"I did some thinking," said Sue Ellen as she dusted one of her shelves. "That statue that you were handling last night? The one with the curse?"
"What about it?" said Brain as he handed the figurine he was holding to Muffy.
"It doesn't switch your bodies. It just gives you weird dreams."
"Oh, really?" said Muffy.
"Yeah. I think it works, too. I moved it after you put it down, and then last night I had a really crazy dream. I dreamed I was a space alien and I tried to destroy the Earth."
"Hmm," Brain pondered.
"That figure you just handed to Muffy...that's the one with the body-switching curse."
Muffy suddenly dropped the figure she was holding. It hit the floor and shattered into several pieces.
"Oh, clumsy me," she said apologetically. "Better call the maid."
(The End.)
"Don't ask questions," said Arthur, grabbing him by the arm. "Just run!"
The six kids ran down the sidewalk as quickly as they could, while all around them the asphalt and concrete started to fracture...
...until finally the rumbling stopped, and was replaced by an other-worldly, almost musical, deafening whine.
Rocks and chunks of asphalt pelted the kids...then an enormous shadow fell over them. They stopped and turned together.
Several seconds passed before the gigantic object ascended sufficiently that they could make out its shape. Round and metallic, with rings of flashing lights, it easily fit the popular image of a flying saucer.
The residents of the street started to walk out of their homes and point into the sky in wonder and horror.
The space vehicle continued to rise until it was roughly the diameter of a medium-sized pizza.
Buster started to chew his fingernails. "Sue Ellen sure knows how to get around," he muttered.
Francine looked at the other kids. "Don't tell me none of you brought a camera," she said hotly.
As the crowd on the street watched, the bottom of the space vehicle began to shine with a variety of colors. They soon formed into a projected image... the face of Sue Ellen, her hair puffs partially cut off by the edges of the spaceship.
She began to speak, and her voice was audible throughout the entire city...
"Maybe I should have mentioned that Earth has been marked for destruction. I had hoped to contribute a few fledgling humans to the interplanetary wildlife preserve, but since you refused to cooperate, I'll just have to incinerate you all."
The kids stared up speechlessly at the transmission, wondering what unspeakable fate would befall their planet.
"Is it getting hot," said Binky, "or is it just..."
"Shut up," Fern snapped.
Then, before they knew what had happened, the image of Sue Ellen on the spacecraft faded out...
...to be replaced by the image of another familiar face...
"It's Brain!" cried Arthur.
Indeed, Sue Ellen's evil grin had been replaced by the friendly smile of their favorite smart boy.
"We interrupt the destruction of Earth for this important message," boomed the voice of The Brain. "Don't give up on the fashion model thing, Muffy."
Muffy/Brain blinked unbelievingly. "So that's where he was all day...hiding out on the spaceship! He must have witnessed the destruction of the planet."
Suddenly the image of Brain blinked out, and Sue Ellen's face returned, this time with an angry, frightened scowl.
"Stop! Don't push that button! AAAAAARGH..."
There was a blinding flash of light...
...followed seconds later by a thundering roar...
...and where the flying saucer had been a second earlier, there was an enormous cloud of fire, smoke, and flying chunks of metal.
The kids looked at each other, confused and speechless.
Arthur was the first to gather enough courage to speak. "He sacrificed himself to save his planet," he said quietly. "It was a good death."
Muffy/Brain's eyes welled up with tears. "He's...gone," she managed to say.
Francine put a comforting arm around her shoulder. "We all feel his loss, Muffy."
"I'm not Muffy!" wailed Muffy/Brain, tears gushing from her eyes. "Didn't you see what happened? My body has been blown to bits! Now I'm doomed to be a girl forever!"
"We can help you," said Francine kindly.
Muffy/Brain tore away from Francine and sank to her knees, weeping. "I don't want to be a girl anymore! I don't want to!"
"Why not?" asked Mrs. Crosswire.
"I don't...I don't...." Her eyes still tightly closed, Muffy thrashed about on her water bed.
"Wake up, honey," chirped her mother. "It's just a dream."
"I don't want to be a girl," Muffy mumbled deliriously.
"You don't really mean that," said Mrs. Crosswire as she rubbed Muffy's forehead. "We'd have to take back all your clothes."
Muffy's eyes sprang open. She looked around the room and gasped. "M-mom?"
"Right here, honey," said her mother.
Muffy sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Oh, Mom, I had the most intense nightmare!"
"Tell me about it."
"I dreamed that The Br...that a boy was inside my body, controlling me. I did all kinds of crazy things."
"So that's why you said you didn't want to be a girl," said Muffy's mother.
"Yeah, Mom," said Muffy as she started to climb down from the water bed. "It was the boy in my body saying that. Honestly, I can't see why any boy wouldn't want to be me. I mean, who cares what the plumbing looks like when the house itself is so beautiful?"
Muffy stepped in front of the full-length mirror and regarded her reflection. She was once again dressed in a white nightgown, and her hair was disordered and tangled. She smiled. "It's good to be me again."
----
At roughly the same time, The Brain hopped into the kitchen of the Powers home, dressed in his usual blue pajamas. His mother was standing over the range, preparing some hot cereal.
"Morning, Alan," she said.
"Morning, Mom," said Brain happily. "I dreamed I saved the world again."
"Oh, really."
Brain sat down at the table and grinned. "Yeah. Sue...I mean, there was this alien, and it was going to blow up the Earth, but I pushed the self-destruct button, and saved the planet at the cost of my own life."
"How noble," said Mrs. Powers as she placed a bowl of hot cereal in front of Brain.
"I can't wait to tell my friends about my dream," said Brain as he sprinkled some brown sugar over his cereal. "It was really cool. I think I was a girl for part of it."
"Sounds interesting," said his mother. "Write it down before you forget it."
----
That evening, Brain and Muffy were once again examining the African knick-knacks in Sue Ellen's private collection.
"I did some thinking," said Sue Ellen as she dusted one of her shelves. "That statue that you were handling last night? The one with the curse?"
"What about it?" said Brain as he handed the figurine he was holding to Muffy.
"It doesn't switch your bodies. It just gives you weird dreams."
"Oh, really?" said Muffy.
"Yeah. I think it works, too. I moved it after you put it down, and then last night I had a really crazy dream. I dreamed I was a space alien and I tried to destroy the Earth."
"Hmm," Brain pondered.
"That figure you just handed to Muffy...that's the one with the body-switching curse."
Muffy suddenly dropped the figure she was holding. It hit the floor and shattered into several pieces.
"Oh, clumsy me," she said apologetically. "Better call the maid."
(The End.)