"Amy!" cried Vicky Dallon, also known as the hero Glory Girl, as soon as her sister walked into the living room, "We're going out for dinner at six tonight. Make sure you're ready and dress nice."

"Excuse me?"

"Dinner. With us," clarified Vicky, indicating herself and her boyfriend Dean sitting beside her on the couch. "And I'm going to set up an awesome date for you, so I don't want to hear a word about you being a third wheel!"

"Thanks, but I'll just avoid the problem entirely by staying home."

"Aw, come on, Amy, we all deserve some fun after dealing with all the Spring Break crap. Plus you need to get out more, socially―and, no school and the hospital don't count."

"Going out is how you relax. I just want a quiet night alone at home. But I hope you guys have a good time," Amy replied as she headed for the kitchen.

"Well, if that's what you really want… but you won't be alone. Mom's big meeting got canceled, so she'll be here with you. She sounded pretty annoyed."

Amy stopped in her tracks. "Hang on, I need to check something," she grumbled before heading back to her room. Vicky watched her sister leave then shot Dean a questioning look, receiving a shrug in return.

Freakazoid! smiled as she strolled down the street of a fairly decent Brockton Bay neighborhood, basking in the late morning sunlight.

"Freakazoid!" greeted a butcher standing outside his shop, "How's it going?"

"Not bad, Sam," answered Freakzoid! as she walked over to the middle aged man. "The college kids have calmed down a bit and the gangs are behaving until they go home, so it's pretty quiet right now. I'm just making the rounds and watching out for kids wandering into the bad neighborhoods."

"Those kids don't know how good they've got it. At least the ones here on break get into trouble because they've stupid―not because they think their daddy's money will protect them."

"Ha! Yeah, kids these da―hang on Sam, I'm getting a call," said Freakazoid! as she moved away and pulled out her phone. "This is Freakazoid!, talk to me. Oh, Miss Militia! I was expecting… uh, never mind, what can I do for you?"

"Freakazoid!,'" said Miss Militia's voice from the phone, "I hope you're well."

"Can't complain. And you?"

"Fine, thank you. Now, the reason I'm calling is to ask about the device you used on Skidmark—"

"The Freak-A-Bleep?"

"Yes," Miss Militia said, after a brief pause, "the … Freak-A-Bleep. We wanted to know if you're able to turn it off."

"No, but it destroys itself after a certain amount of time."

"I see. How long before that happens?"

"A month after Skidmark's last curse."

"Oh… my. I'll pass that on, thank you. Maybe we'll get that Freak-A-Bleep off him someday…" Miss Militia added dubiously.

"Good luck!" Freakazoid! exclaimed as she ended the call, but before she could put her phone away, it rang again. "I'm sorry, Miss Militia, was there—Amy! Hi!" She listened for a moment before crying, "Do I!"

A groan came from the phone.

"I mean, I would be delighted to accompany you to dinner tonight," Freakazoid! quickly corrected herself. After a few seconds, she smiled and added, "Ok, 7:30 at Dino's on 8th Street, I'll see you then."

Putting her phone away, she posed dramatically, and determination strong in her voice, declared, "I will make this the best date ever! Every minute from now until then will be spent planning and preparing! Nothing will—"

"Hey Freakazoid!, want to go bowling?" asked Cosgrove as he rolled up in his cruiser. "Lois Lanes is having a two-for-one super sale."

"I would be delighted to accompany you to bowling."

"Eh?"

"Oh, sorry, Cosgrove. I mean, sure!"

"And that looks like a spare for me," Freakzoid said as she moved to enter her score for the frame.

"I'm pretty sure it only counts if it's in your lane," remarked Cosgrove as he used a tortilla chip to fish for a jalapeno slice in the sea of cheese sauce in the cardboard tray in front of him.

"Really?"

"Really!" confirmed the angry bowler in the lane next to them.

"Ah well," sighed Freakazoid! as she flopped into her seat. A moment later, she perked up and exclaimed, "You know, this is just like that time we went axe throwing!"

"Huh. Yeah, you're right."

"I remember it like it was just yesterday…"

Cosgrove paused in his fishing attempt and looked around at the faint sound of a harp being plucked. Turning to the nearby wall, he leaned forward and squinted suspiciously as it seemed to ripple and distort.

"Cut it out," he commanded. The wall immediately snapped back into solidity and the harp music cut out.

"Aw, Cosgrove, I was starting a flashback," complained Freakazoid!.

"Sorry, kid. Flashbacks give me gas."

"Right!" declared Freakazoid! as the police cruiser drove off, "Now to prepare for the perfect first date with Amy! Ohmigosh! my first date ever is tonight! How do I act?! Do I need to bring something?! What do I wear?!" She looked down at herself. "Ok, at least I have that last one covered. But what about everything else?! I know! As always, the Internet will provide the answer!"

The hero immediately pulled out her phone and started tapping away. "What… to bring... on a… first… date." She looked at the results, scowled, and started tapping away again. "What… to bring… on a… first date… with a girl." After a moment of frowning at the screen she resumed her tapping. "...on a… first date… with another girl." As she read the results, her eyes slowly widened and she quickly tapped away. "...with another girl +teenager." She tapped a link, and a moment later blushed a deep blue and cried, "Freaky, clear browser history!"

Quickly putting her phone away, Freakazoid! looked around to make sure no one had seen her brief research session and muttered, "Stupid internet! I'd have been better off just doing something lame like buying flowers… Wait! Of course—flowers!"

O

"Show me your biggest bouquet!" shouted Freakazoid! as she burst into the florist shop.

"This way!" cried the dapper florist as he jumped up from his chair and rushed to the back of the shop. "What kind of flowers do you need?!"

"Red roses!" answered Freakazoid! as she raced after him.

"Behold..." announced the florist as he screeched to a halt in front of a refrigerated case, "our largest and finest bouquet of red roses!"

"It's beautiful..."

"Indeed it is… May I ask what the special occasion is, miss?"

"It's my first date with Amy!"

"Ahh… Well, if you don't mind a little advice from someone in the flower business, you might want to go with something less extravagant."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, people usually get large bouquets like this for occasions like anniversaries or to say they're really sorry for totalling the car. Giving one on a first date can make your date think you're either desperate or trying to show that you're rich."

"Oh… well, neither of those sounds very good. I'll get this smaller bouquet then." Freakazoid! smiled. "I'm sure Amy will love it."

Ooooo

Amy smiled softly as she gazed at the bouquet of roses in Freakazoid!'s hand. "They're lovely..." she said as she accepted the flowers. Suddenly she got a distant look in her eyes and added in a monotone, "and it will take approximately 9 days for them to wither and fully succumb to the teeming masses of bacteria currently devouring them from within."

ooooO

"What was that?!" cried the shaken florist. "W-was that Panacea? How was she here? Where did she go? And that's not how cut roses die!"

"Don't worry. That was just a flash-forward. They happen sometimes when comedically appropr—"

Uuuuurpp! "Ohmigosh!" cried the florist, one hand covering his mouth, "I'm so sorry! I don't know what came over me! That just slipped out!"

"It's ok," Freakazoid! said, waving off the earthshaking belch, "apparently flash-forwards affect some people that way. Oooh, actually, I'll take that instead of the roses," she added, pointing to an item on a nearby shelf.

"So, Amy, when is your mystery date going to get here?" asked Vicky as she eyed the bread and wondered how much longer she had to wait before it would be appropriate to help herself to another slice.

"Now," replied her sister, standing up as a well-groomed, attractive young man wearing an expensive suit approached.

"Ooh, that's quite the catch! I didn't think you had it in … you?" Vicky trailed off in confusion as the man walked past their table.

"Amy!" cried Freakazoid! as she came directly to their table behind him, "Wow, you look great! Hi guys, I'm Freakazoid!."

"Thank you, you look very … heroic," replied Amy before a moment of silence fell, shocked on the part of Dean and Vicky, and awkward for Freakazoid! and Amy as they wondered if they were supposed to hug or something.

"Oh! I brought this for you!" exclaimed Freakazoid! as she reached into a pocket, and with a flourish, produced a potted plant.

"Did … she just pull a cactus out of her pocket?" asked Dean as he stared.

"You brought me a cactus?" asked Amy as she accepted the plant and looked down at the triangular green plant bearing an orange bulbous section atop its trunk.

"It reminded me of you: pretty, prickly—and alive."

Dean and Vicky exchanged glances as Amy gently stroked the cactus's spines. "Huh. This is actually a cactus with a different type of cactus grafted on top of it. Interesting. Thank you," she said, giving her date a small but genuine smile as they sat down.

"Really, am I the only one concerned about the cactus in her pocket—OW!" Dean frowned and rubbed his side where Vicky had elbowed him.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly, before further conversation was interrupted by the waiter bringing their menus. A few minutes later, she put down her menu and beamed at her sister's date. "So, Freakazoid!, I'm a big fan. I loved the way you got Cricket with the giant flyswatter from that billboard last week! It was hilarious!"

"Thanks! Sometimes you get lucky and things just work out that way."

"I hear you. Like the time that mugger ran at me and I just flipped open that manhole cover in front of him."

"Didn't he break his leg from the fall?" asked Amy.

"Uh… I don't remember. So, Amy! Since when have you been into dating girls?" Vicky quickly asked before taking a sip of her water.

"Since that summer your aura was totally out of control," she answered, raising her menu to block the resultant spray of water.

"W-what?" asked Vicky, wide-eyed and pale. "Oh my God, Amy! I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to make—"

"You didn't make me like girls," Amy said, cutting her off. "Your aura just made it impossible for me to not notice I like them."

"For me, it was belly dancers!" exclaimed Freakazoid!.

Vicky glanced at her a moment before turning back to her sister, "But how do you know that's all it was?"

"Besides the fact that once you got it under control, I still liked girls but stopped having weird thoughts about you?" Amy shrugged. "What does it really matter, Vicky?"

Vicky looked down at the table. "I don't know… it just feels like it should."

I'm not saying I don't like her," Vicky said as she walked into the house, "I'm just saying she's a bit … strange."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Amy replied with a sniff.

"She gave you a cactus on your first date."

"I thought it was a lovely gift. It was unique."

"What about how she used the bread on the table to make a sandwich of her entree?"

"So what? It may not be great manners, but it's not weird."

"She ordered pasta, Amy!"

"Who are you talking about?" asked Carol from the couch as she muted the tv.

"Amy's date, Freakazoid!."

"The independent hero involved in the Armsmaster incidents?" Carol frowned. "The one who shows no signs of self-control and clearly acts without thinking? And you say she was behaving erratically, Victoria?"

"No, that's not what I—"

Carol nodded. "It's obviously just a matter of time before she does something that gets her into serious trouble, and we don't want her associated with New Wave when that happens. Amy, I don't want you seeing her again, do you understand?"

"Perfectly," snapped Amy and stiffly walked to her room. Closing the door behind her, she took out her phone and tapped out a text message. 'I had fun. Want to go out again Saturday?'