Dudley Green sat on a playground bench, having eaten very little for lunch. He seldom desired food, and his waist had shriveled to a ghost of its former self. His nose, from which the cast had recently been removed, was buried in a fifth-grade history book. So much had taken place in the past three hundred years—wars, alliances, inventions—that once he started reading about the things he'd missed, he couldn't stop.
A convertible pulled up to the side of the street, driven by a woman with antlers. Two floppy-haired cat girls jumped out. He knew them immediately as they approached.
"Hello, girls," he greeted Sue Ellen and April.
"Come with us," Sue Ellen urged him.
"You look like you were in a fight," Dudley observed. "Did you win?"
"Just come on," said the girl, grabbing his elbow. "We're going to make a girl out of you."
"Indeed," said the rat boy, closing his book and stumbling after them. "How do you propose to do that, pray tell?"
----
Tegan moved her barette to the top of her head and grinned at Alan. Before them, Amy, Buster, and Dudley began to wonder at their new forms. April and Sue Ellen watched from the edge of Amy's bed as the switched kids gazed at their reflections.
"I'm me again," said Buster with relief. "Not that there was anything wrong with being a girl."
"The nose is a bit crooked," said Amy through Dudley's mouth, "but Yordilian girls can't afford to be too picky about looks. It'll do."
No one was more pleased with the transformation than Dudley, now a happy inhabitant of Amy Belnap's body.
"I'm a girl again! I'm a girl!" she cheered.
"And this time it's for good," said Alan with confidence.
"Bless you, Alan!" gushed Amy/Dudley. "May I kiss you? It's been so long since I've kissed a boy."
"Kiss away."
Dudley/Amy watched in amusement while Amy/Dudley smothered Alan's face with grateful kisses. "You're all free to go," he announced.
"Good luck with your new life as a boy," April said to him. "Feel free to drop by if you're ever in our solar system."
"Too bad we didn't get to finish our fight," said Dudley/Amy. "You probably could have beaten me."
The excited Amy/Dudley led the march to the interstellar portal. "I can't wait to show my new body to all my friends," she enthused.
"Should we start calling you Dolly again?" asked Alan.
"If it's not too much trouble."
She virtually floated through the gateway to Earth. Alan and Tegan followed close behind, and then Sue Ellen and April.
Marmel switched off the portal and looked quizzically at the rat boy in front of her.
"Get the hovercar ready," he commanded. "I'm going to walk around the neighborhood a bit, and when I come back, we're going shopping."
Three Yordilian cat girls in swim suits were frolicking in a sprinkler when Dudley, formerly Amy, strolled past. "Hello there," he called to them.
"Hi," said one of the girls, waving politely.
Dudley shrugged and walked on. He had expected a more enthusiastic greeting.
"Who was that?" another of the girls wondered.
"Just another Earth boy," replied the first girl.
----
A large crowd of kids and adults assembled at Buster's condo to welcome him home. Amazon Puppy, delighted at the return of her master, sniffed the boy's pants for traces of food he might have picked up on his long journey.
"There I was, trapped on an alien world, surrounded by lovesick girls with ninja powers," he recounted. "I held them off for as long as I could, and just as my strength was near its end, my friends came to rescue me."
April and Sue Ellen nodded. They could have easily refuted his story and countered it with the tale of his temporary transformation into a girl, but they didn't want to spoil his moment.
"What about Alan and Prunella?" Bitzi inquired. "Why aren't they here? Why are they hiding from us?"
"It must have something to do with Alan's queer magical powers," said Dolly the blond cat girl.
"Er, Dolly, about that word 'queer'…" Muffy cautioned her.
Snacks were served, and those in attendance had to hurry to obtain their share before Buster ate them all.
"I love both of you so much," said Mrs. Krantz to her adopted daughters. "But if you want to go back to your natural parents, I support you."
"That's not an option at the moment," said April. "My trial date is a week away."
A few minutes later, Sue Ellen and Buster seized upon the same carrot stick at once. After a brief tug of war, Sue Ellen let go.
"I know better than to fight with a rabbit over a carrot," she quipped.
"I think it's so cool that you're an alien," said Buster through a mouthful of carrot.
"I still consider myself a human," Sue Ellen told him. "I want to be treated like one."
"Okay, Sue Alien," Buster joked.
"I liked you better as a girl," Sue Ellen grumbled.
----
It was still dark outside, but the sun was rising in Prunella's heart.
"I remember yesterday," she whispered to herself. "I'm cured."
She bolted into a sitting position. Tegan and Claire, lying in the bed next to her, mumbled and turned over.
"I'm cured! I'm cured!" Prunella cried out loud.
"You're cured?" Tegan marveled. "The operation was a success?"
"Yes, I remember everything that happened yesterday," said the rat girl. "Except for the whole time I was being operated on."
"That's wonderful!" exclaimed Tegan.
"C'est magnifique," added Claire.
"Let's go tell everybody," said Prunella.
After everyone had bathed and dressed, Bernie prepared a special breakfast for the group. It was the usual bacon and pancakes, but it was special because Prunella had regained the use of her short-term memory.
"This makes me so happy," said Alan.
"Yes, thank goodness for aliens," said Tegan.
"We're all very happy for Prunella," said Mansch. "But now let's get down to business. Jack and Shelly, the two children we liberated last night, are staying at the home of another of my associates."
"He thinks Fern's a nice girl too," Bernie interjected.
"Shelly's powers of telepathy are a wonder to behold," Mansch went on. "As for Jack, he's uncertain about his powers, and doesn't want to tell us exactly what they are."
"Maybe he thinks his powers are evil," said C.V. "I should have a talk with him."
"However, Jack has informed us of another school, one in Willardville, where a boy with phenomenal powers of memory is being held."
"Powers of memory?" mused Victor. "Why would they lock up a kid for that?"
"I don't know," answered Mansch, "but we'll find out, won't we?"
Alan hesitantly raised his hand. "Er, excuse me, Mr. Mansch."
"Yes, Alan?"
The bear boy stood. "If you're planning to break into another school, I'm afraid I'll have to opt out."
A hush passed over the table.
"Opt out?" said Mansch. "Why?"
"You know why," said Alan with more boldness. "I only teamed up with you to help Prunella. Now that she's cured, I have no reason to stay here."
"What about me?" Tegan shot back. "I'm a reason."
"I care about you, Tegan," Alan went on. "But let's be realistic. These people are criminals. They think they're doing the right thing, but sooner or later, someone's going to get hurt or killed."
Mansch shot Tegan a meaningful glance, then rose from the table and strolled away.
"Let's talk, Alan," Tegan urged her brother.
They found a corner where they could be alone, although they were sure that Victor, at least, could hear every word they said.
"I wish you would stay with us," said Tegan earnestly. "We have so much work to do. There are hundreds of Brainchildren to be set free."
"Then set them free," Alan responded. "But not like this." He weighed his next statement carefully. "Why do you need Mansch, anyway? You're as smart as he is, if not smarter. You can lead the Brainchildren as well as he can."
"No, I can't," Tegan insisted. "He's a great leader. He's a great man."
Alan could scarcely manage to keep his voice down to a mutter. "You're being naïve, Tegan. If he didn't have you, he'd be up to his old tricks. Have you forgotten that he tried to frame Molly's dad? Have you forgotten that he kidnapped Fern?"
Mansch drew near to them as they debated. The cat man was concealing an object in one hand.
"I hope you've convinced your brother to see reason," he addressed Tegan with a sinister tone.
"I've already seen reason," Alan snapped. "And it's not you."
"Then I'm sorry it has to come to this."
Trepidation filled Alan's heart. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm not going to do anything," replied Mansch. "I'm just going to stand here…"
"…while I change the way you think," said Tegan, reaching for her barette.
"No!" cried Alan. "You wouldn't do that to your brother!"
"Soon you'll be just like Ray," said Tegan wickedly.
Startled by the outcry, Prunella leaped from her chair. "What are they doing to him?"
"Do not interfere, ma cherie," said Claire, and the rat girl found herself unable to move a muscle.
"You remember what happened the last time you tried to put someone else's personality in my head," said Alan angrily.
"This time will be different," said Tegan. "This time you'll be unconscious."
Mansch uncovered the object he held in his hand—a small spray can. He pointed the nozzle at Alan's face…
"Stop it!" shouted C.V., jumping up. Before he had a chance to exercise his fear power on Mansch, a mental bolt from Claire sent him flying against a wall. He slumped to the floor, his glasses askew.
Alan had never been more frightened. Not when he had learned that his son had traveled from the future to kill Francine. Not when he had gazed into the sky at an exploding sun. Not when he had awoken in a hospital with Prunella's body and a bad case of amnesia. Not even when C.V. had beamed pure fear into his mind. In a short moment he would be asleep, then wake up as a new person. An evil person…
Just as Mansch tensed his fingers to apply the knockout gas, Alan beheld a startling yet familiar image. The villainous cat man's memories, all of them, were laid out before his view like an endless field of sagebrush. No juniper was evident, as it had been on previous occasions.
Alan glanced over at Tegan. Her hands were raised, but she hadn't lowered her barette.
There was no time to think. No time to be selective.
He made the sagebrush disappear. All of it.
Mansch's eyes rolled back into his head.
Tegan watched in horror as the cat man plummeted to his knees, his face frozen in a glazed mask. He dropped to one side. Saliva dripped from the corner of his mouth. He breathed loudly and heavily.
Alan said something he had never said before.
"Oh, my God…"
Furious, Tegan grabbed him by the shoulders. "You wiped his mind!" she yelled. "How did you do it? We weren't merged! We weren't…"
Seeing no point in taking out her anger on her brother, she knelt and rolled the catatonic cat man onto his back. He stared up at her with empty eyes. Tears began to flow down her cheeks.
Terror in all its forms gripped Alan as the meaning of what had happened dawned upon him. He had to get away.
"Come on, Prunella," he called to his friend. "We're leaving." Looking around at the other children, he added, "And don't try to stop us, or you'll end up like him."
Bernie and the Brainchildren recoiled in terror, except for C.V., who was struggling to raise himself from the floor.
Freed from Claire's telekinetic grasp, Prunella hurried after Alan. The two children raced away from Bernie's house with utmost speed. They didn't stop until they were three blocks away.
They stopped. They were in an unfamiliar part of the city. They didn't care.
Alan turned to Prunella, a look of pale horror on his face. "Don't ever tell anyone what just happened," he said pleadingly.
"Why not?" asked the confused girl. "Did you kill him?"
Alan shook his head. "He'll recover, but he won't be the man he was."
"I didn't like the man he was," said Prunella glibly.
"I just erased a man's mind," said Alan, grim emotion in his voice. "I wasn't merged with Tegan. I did it on my own." He took in a desperate breath. "And I could do it again."
"They'll lock you up if they find out," Prunella realized.
"They won't find out," said Alan desperately. "They can't. They mustn't."
"I won't tell anyone."
"Thank you."
Alan took Prunella by the hand, and they ambled along the sidewalk in search of a payphone.
Half an hour later Mrs. Powers drove up to the curb next to them, and they loaded themselves into her car.
She began to drive. "I want you to tell me everything that happened, from the beginning," she said coldly. "Once you're finished, I'll decide on a punishment."
"We met some aliens, we rescued Buster, and Prunella's brain is fixed," Alan told her. "That's all you need to know."
"Like hell it is," said his mother.
Alan remained silent. Any carelessly chosen word might consign him to his doom.
He pictured Mansch lying on the floor of Bernie's house, reduced to the level of a drooling infant. They'll figure it out, he thought. They'll know it was me.
----
to be continued