"Let's go inside," said Brain. "I want to get out of these pajamas."
Arthur, Francine, Muffy, and Molly reluctantly followed Brain back into his house. Not once did they dare to look down the street to see what fate had befallen Fern.
As Brain closed the front door after them, Muffy sighed plaintively. "Now Fern's a rhino. She never seemed the type to..."
Muffy's sentence was interrupted by a hard pounding on the door. The kids turned, surprised.
"Brain, let me in!" came the voice from outside. It sounded much like Fern, but deeper and hoarser.
Brain stepped over to the door and looked through the peephole. What he saw shocked and disgusted him. Rhino Fern was completely naked, except for the bow on her head.
"Please! They're coming for me!" she pleaded.
Brain backed away from the door. "That's a little more about Fern than I ever wanted to know," he remarked.
"Shouldn't we let her in?" asked Arthur.
Brain opened his mouth as if to say no, when there was a deafening...
CRUNCH!
Brain whirled, pale with fright.
A one-horned rhino nose was hanging through a gaping hole in the door, exactly where his chest had been seconds earlier...
The other kids hurried to Brain's side, except for Molly, who stood motionless and ghastly pale.
Fern retracted her nose from the hole, then stuck in her arm and fumbled for the doorknob. The kids watched speechlessly, unsure of what to do.
Then she withdrew her arm as quickly as she had inserted it. Brain knelt and peered through the hole, and saw that the two police officers who had visited earlier were dragging Fern away. Arthur and Muffy then took turns looking through the hole. Fern's rhino face almost appeared to be smiling.
"They'll put her in a cage," Arthur lamented. "Can't we do something?"
"There's nothing we can do," said Brain sadly. "She's one of them now."
"I'll bet they won't even give her the dignity of clothes," Muffy remarked.
Brain turned and noticed that Molly was sitting on a chair in the living room, her hands between her knees, obviously very shaken. He hurried to her side and bent his knees to be even with her face.
"Molly, you look terrible. Are you okay?"
Molly looked at him, and Brain could tell that she was trying hard not to cry.
"She could have hurt you...or killed you," she said quietly. "If she'd been only a second or two sooner..."
Brain tried to comfort her. "Molly, it's all right..."
"Stupid rhinos," said Molly with rising anger in her voice. "I hate them! I wish they were all DEAD!"
"All dead," Muffy muttered to herself thoughtfully.
"Calm down, Molly," said Brain to the rabbit girl, whose face was now wet with tears. "You've got to keep your emotions under control, or you'll end up just like Fern."
Brain felt a tap on his shoulder and looked up. There was Muffy, wearing a confident smile.
"I've got it, Brain! I know why this is happening!"
Brain straightened up, suddenly curious. Arthur and Francine quickly came to Muffy's side.
"I think Prunella was on to something," said Muffy.
Arthur, Francine, and Brain groaned and rolled their eyes.
"No, hear me out!" Muffy continued. "In all our confusion we forgot one very important fact about rhinoceroses. They're an endangered species!"
"So?" said Brain.
"They could all die out in the next fifty years," said Muffy excitedly. "Don't you get it? This is, like, some kind of...retribution of nature. Humans are killing off rhinos, so nature punishes humans by turning them into rhinos. That's got to be it, Brain!"
"Get a grip, Muffy," Brain admonished her.
Muffy became more and more indignant. "You're looking at this all wrong. You think humans are good and rhinos are bad, but it's the humans who have been hunting the rhinos to extinction!"
"Shut up!" Brain shouted.
"Rhinos good, humans bad!" shrieked Muffy, her face a mask of outrage.
"Why, you..." Brain raised a fist threateningly, but then caught himself and struggled to remain calm.
Muffy, in the meantime, was skipping merrily toward the front door, her arms open wide. "I'm coming, my friends!" she chanted.
As she opened the door and sailed through, Arthur, Brain, and Francine noticed that her pajamas were starting to rip at the seams.
"Should we try to stop her?" asked Arthur as the door closed after Muffy.
"It's too late," said Brain glumly.
Having nothing better to do, Arthur, Brain, and Francine sat on the couch together.
"I suppose we could watch the news," Brain suggested.
"It's probably all bad," said Francine.
"I know where Buster is," said Molly.
The other three kids gasped in unison.
Molly rose from her chair. "I have something to tell you, and you're not gonna like me after I tell it to you."
"Well, we don't like you now, so...go ahead," said Arthur.
Molly walked over to the TV and rested her elbow on it.
"I wanted to be a rhino like the other Tough Customers. I thought it would be cool to be so big and strong. I didn't think about the death and destruction they could cause...until now."
"Go on," said Brain.
"The Tough Customers heard that you and your friends were planning to defeat the rhinos somehow. So I decided to not turn into a rhino right away, but to spy on you first."
Brain scowled at her. "So that's been your game all along."
"It gets worse," Molly went on. "I knew about the plan to round up the rhino kids. While you were asleep, I sneaked out to warn the Tough Customers. But there was one thing I didn't count on..."
Francine's eyes went wide with fear as the realization dawned upon her.
"Buster...followed...you..."
"That's right," said Molly.
"Where is he now?" asked Arthur.
Molly took a deep breath. "He's a prisoner of the Tough Customers."
(to be continued)
Arthur, Francine, Muffy, and Molly reluctantly followed Brain back into his house. Not once did they dare to look down the street to see what fate had befallen Fern.
As Brain closed the front door after them, Muffy sighed plaintively. "Now Fern's a rhino. She never seemed the type to..."
Muffy's sentence was interrupted by a hard pounding on the door. The kids turned, surprised.
"Brain, let me in!" came the voice from outside. It sounded much like Fern, but deeper and hoarser.
Brain stepped over to the door and looked through the peephole. What he saw shocked and disgusted him. Rhino Fern was completely naked, except for the bow on her head.
"Please! They're coming for me!" she pleaded.
Brain backed away from the door. "That's a little more about Fern than I ever wanted to know," he remarked.
"Shouldn't we let her in?" asked Arthur.
Brain opened his mouth as if to say no, when there was a deafening...
CRUNCH!
Brain whirled, pale with fright.
A one-horned rhino nose was hanging through a gaping hole in the door, exactly where his chest had been seconds earlier...
The other kids hurried to Brain's side, except for Molly, who stood motionless and ghastly pale.
Fern retracted her nose from the hole, then stuck in her arm and fumbled for the doorknob. The kids watched speechlessly, unsure of what to do.
Then she withdrew her arm as quickly as she had inserted it. Brain knelt and peered through the hole, and saw that the two police officers who had visited earlier were dragging Fern away. Arthur and Muffy then took turns looking through the hole. Fern's rhino face almost appeared to be smiling.
"They'll put her in a cage," Arthur lamented. "Can't we do something?"
"There's nothing we can do," said Brain sadly. "She's one of them now."
"I'll bet they won't even give her the dignity of clothes," Muffy remarked.
Brain turned and noticed that Molly was sitting on a chair in the living room, her hands between her knees, obviously very shaken. He hurried to her side and bent his knees to be even with her face.
"Molly, you look terrible. Are you okay?"
Molly looked at him, and Brain could tell that she was trying hard not to cry.
"She could have hurt you...or killed you," she said quietly. "If she'd been only a second or two sooner..."
Brain tried to comfort her. "Molly, it's all right..."
"Stupid rhinos," said Molly with rising anger in her voice. "I hate them! I wish they were all DEAD!"
"All dead," Muffy muttered to herself thoughtfully.
"Calm down, Molly," said Brain to the rabbit girl, whose face was now wet with tears. "You've got to keep your emotions under control, or you'll end up just like Fern."
Brain felt a tap on his shoulder and looked up. There was Muffy, wearing a confident smile.
"I've got it, Brain! I know why this is happening!"
Brain straightened up, suddenly curious. Arthur and Francine quickly came to Muffy's side.
"I think Prunella was on to something," said Muffy.
Arthur, Francine, and Brain groaned and rolled their eyes.
"No, hear me out!" Muffy continued. "In all our confusion we forgot one very important fact about rhinoceroses. They're an endangered species!"
"So?" said Brain.
"They could all die out in the next fifty years," said Muffy excitedly. "Don't you get it? This is, like, some kind of...retribution of nature. Humans are killing off rhinos, so nature punishes humans by turning them into rhinos. That's got to be it, Brain!"
"Get a grip, Muffy," Brain admonished her.
Muffy became more and more indignant. "You're looking at this all wrong. You think humans are good and rhinos are bad, but it's the humans who have been hunting the rhinos to extinction!"
"Shut up!" Brain shouted.
"Rhinos good, humans bad!" shrieked Muffy, her face a mask of outrage.
"Why, you..." Brain raised a fist threateningly, but then caught himself and struggled to remain calm.
Muffy, in the meantime, was skipping merrily toward the front door, her arms open wide. "I'm coming, my friends!" she chanted.
As she opened the door and sailed through, Arthur, Brain, and Francine noticed that her pajamas were starting to rip at the seams.
"Should we try to stop her?" asked Arthur as the door closed after Muffy.
"It's too late," said Brain glumly.
Having nothing better to do, Arthur, Brain, and Francine sat on the couch together.
"I suppose we could watch the news," Brain suggested.
"It's probably all bad," said Francine.
"I know where Buster is," said Molly.
The other three kids gasped in unison.
Molly rose from her chair. "I have something to tell you, and you're not gonna like me after I tell it to you."
"Well, we don't like you now, so...go ahead," said Arthur.
Molly walked over to the TV and rested her elbow on it.
"I wanted to be a rhino like the other Tough Customers. I thought it would be cool to be so big and strong. I didn't think about the death and destruction they could cause...until now."
"Go on," said Brain.
"The Tough Customers heard that you and your friends were planning to defeat the rhinos somehow. So I decided to not turn into a rhino right away, but to spy on you first."
Brain scowled at her. "So that's been your game all along."
"It gets worse," Molly went on. "I knew about the plan to round up the rhino kids. While you were asleep, I sneaked out to warn the Tough Customers. But there was one thing I didn't count on..."
Francine's eyes went wide with fear as the realization dawned upon her.
"Buster...followed...you..."
"That's right," said Molly.
"Where is he now?" asked Arthur.
Molly took a deep breath. "He's a prisoner of the Tough Customers."
(to be continued)