Magical Girl Pretty Ruri
Episode Twelve: Air-brush it Black
By Tailkinker and Kitsy
tailkinker@home.com, kitsy@home.com
*DISCLAIMER* Warning: Java compilation error. Insufficient coffee. Due to this, none of the characters, situations and sites belong to the authors of this story. They are currently just used to explore the effects of sleep deprivation. "Just when Tsukumo sought a new life, sought freedom, the Dark World made one last strike against him. Their justice against one who betrayed them, but it was not our sense of justice. I said it last time he died. Passion, Friendship, exertion...Each person, each group, has their own justice." Tail Kinker and Kitsy present Magical Girl Pretty Ruri Episode Twelve: Air-brush It Black The bedroom door opened a crack, and Hoshino Usagi peered into her daughter's bedroom. The cat glanced up at her and mewed tiredly, then snuggled back into the bean bag chair. "Ummm...Ruri?" Usagi walked over to the bed and sat down next to Ruri. Ruri rolled over and covered her head with the pillow. "It's Sunday. I can sleep in. Go away." Usagi rubbed Ruri's back softly. "I just got off the phone with Megumi's mother. She told me about what happened last night." Ruri rolled back over and sat up, blinking. "What did she tell you happened?" "About Megumi's friend being shot..." She noticed that Ruri had gone to bed still partially clothed; the blue and white dress she had worn was tossed haphazardly over the chair by the computer desk, but she had apparently removed nothing else but her shoes. "Were you nearby when it happened?" "Ummm...Actually, I was right beside them." Usagi froze at that; the idea that her daughter had come so close to death terrified her. "Ruri, you know that if you want to talk about it, I'm here." Ruri bit her lip. "Thank, Mom...I can't talk about it, not right now. Maybe later." "I understand. And I'm not going to push you. You'll have to work part of this out for yourself. But remember: You're not alone. I'll always be there for you." She stood up. "I've got to get started on the chores...you don't have to worry about it today." Ruri looked up at Usagi. "No, I'll help. Just give me a minute to get dressed. I'm starting to really like Sundays." * * * * * "Oh, Ruri! Watch what you're doing! Not so much soap in the machine!" "Huh? Oh, sorry. Not used to...I had my mind on other things." Usagi looked at the blue and white dress critically. "I hate to say it, Ruri, but I think this dress is a write- off." She tossed it into the garbage can. "What else do you have that's halfway nice?" Ruri thought about the orange dress. "Nothing." "Okay, then. Put on that orange dress for today." << www.geocities.com/groves_ca/mgpr/nad17.jpg >> "Ick." "Ruri, just remember to wear a slip, and it'll look halfway normal. Oh, and remember: silk stockings with it. The white ones should look good." "It still makes my eyes bleed." "Don't worry! We're going to buy you some new clothes today. Just as soon as we finish the chores - shopping!" "I thought we weren't going shopping until Wednesday?" "Well, I thought it'd be nice for you, me and Megumi to do some shopping today. Megumi's mother has to work today, so I told her I'd keep Megumi company." "Ah." Ruri started the washer and closed the lid. "I'm guessing that you'd think this would cheer both of us up?" "Ruri..." Usagi crouched in front of the girl. "Someone very close to Megumi died. Her mother doesn't want her left alone, and I thought this would be an okay way to take her mind off things. Now, are you gonna co-operate with me, or not?" "Hai." * * * * * The blinds were drawn tight, and the lights off. Add to that the fact that the day was darkly overcast, and no light penetrated into Megumi's room. Which was fine by her. There was a knock at the doorway. "Megumi, I'm going out shortly. Usagi-san and Ruri-chan should be over shortly; they want to take you out shopping. I'll be out late, so Ruri's mother will be making dinner for you tonight." "Whatever..." Her mother sighed, and walked off. Megumi rolled over to face the wall, doing her best to tune out the world. * * * * * "Yes! I got the bastard! BWAHAHAHAHAHA--" "Genichiro..." "HA-urk. Um. Yes, my Prince?" "The issues surrounding Tsukumo's death have greatly disturbed me. That one of my Dark Generals could turn his back on me is troublesome indeed. That his death was neccessary is equally distressful." Akara summoned an image in his crystal ball. "We require ki." "Yes, my Prince." "It is now your task to gather it. Please, do not fail me. I do not wish to be this distressed again." "I will not fail you, my Prince." "What is your plan?" Genichiro touched the crystal ball, altering the image. "My plan is twofold. We no longer have access to OverGolems. As such, we have no way to transport ki directly from Earth to our reservoirs. However, I have discovered that humans with incredibly high ki levels can be corrupted to serve a similar role as an OverGolem." Akara frowned. "Individuals with high ki levels are usually very skilled in their field. Usually, that field is a combat art. Are you sure it's wise to--" "My Prince, it is the only way to get the energy here with any level of efficiency. Lesser Golems can transport it, but with the cost in ki of transporting a Golem across the Barrier, the net gain is very low." "Genichiro..." "Yes, my Prince?" "If you interrupt me even one more time...you will be converted into ammo for that laser cannon you love so much..." Genichiro winced. ~Mental note: dismantle the laser...~ "You may proceed." Akara faded from view. Genichiro allowed himself a small smile. ~Yes, those high ki individuals are very powerful...Powerful enough to destroy Pretty Ruri.~ * * * * * *BANG*BANG*BANG* "Hey, Megumi! Ready to go?" Usagi waited, but there was no answer forthcoming. Ruri stepped forward and rapped on the door. "Hey, Megumi-chan! You're gonna be late for school!" Usagi glanced over at Ruri. "There's no school today." "I know. I just wanted to say it for a change." "Ah." They waited. Still, no answer. Ruri sighed. She clasped her hands behind her back, tapped the door twice with one foot, then kicked the `Welcome' mat. Usagi gasped. "Oh! They have a spare key under the mat." "Of course." Ruri sighed. "It's a cliche, after all." Usagi picked up the key and unlocked the door, then paused. "I don't really feel right about walking into the house uninvited." "Okay. Wait here, and I'll be out in a bit." Ruri strolled into the house, hands still behind her back. She walked down the hall, stopping at Megumi's bedroom, and raised one hand to tap on the shoji. Suddenly, it hit her: She'd never been inside Megumi's apartment in her life. Either this life, or the other. Oh well. She knocked on the shoji. "Megumi-chan." "Go away." "Megumi-chan. It's me, Ruri." She grinned suddenly. "Meow." The shoji flew open. Megumi gaped at Ruri. "`Meow'?" Ruri took a step back. "You'd better get dressed. Mom and I are going shopping, and you're going with us." "No." Megumi started to close the shoji. "Okay." Ruri grabbed her arm. "Come on, then." "Hey, I'm not even decent." She was, in fact, wearing only a short T-shirt and a pair of panties. Ruri paused. "Do you want to get dressed?" "No!" "Then come on." She pulled again. "ACK!" Megumi pulled her arm free and stepped back, scowling. Ruri looked at her, head tilted to one side, smiling faintly. "You're not gonna give up, are you?" "That's right." "And if I resist too much, you're just gonna drag me out there half-dressed, aren't you?" Ruri nodded. "I've been asked to come and get you, so we can go shopping. If you wish to get dressed first, that's fine. I'll wait. If not, then we're ready to go." She almost smiled. "Either way, we're going out shopping." "Don't I get a choice in this?" "No." Megumi scowled. "Fine. I'll go get dressed." She slammed the shoji shut, grumbling. "Good. It should prove far less embarrassing." "For whom? You or me?" She opened the shoji. "How dressed up am I supposed to get?" "Uhhh...why?" "Well, you're going formal..." "Baka." * * * * * "We now have a plan! We have a method! Now, all I need is some way to figure out who has the most ki in the city..." The room was dark, the walls lined with shelves of books. Against one wall was a massive oaken desk with a single lantern casting feeble illumination. Genichiro paced nervously between the desk and the doorway. "How did you do it, Tsukumo? What did you have that let you detect the ki in a person?" He started rifling through the books on the desk. "Necronomicon Ex Mortis..." He tossed it over his shoulder. "The Masoratic Texts..." Pitch. "What's this camera doing here?" Pitch. "The Book of Nod? I thought that was fictional!" Pitch. "Complete Guide to the Qabalah? Stupid new age stuff..." Pitch. "The unexpurgated and illustrated Kama Sutra?" This one he slipped into his jacket. "He's gotta have something in this library on ki!" "What are you looking for? Ki gathering for idiots? Probably too advanced a topic for you." "Gee, thanks." Genichiro turned to face the tall, willowy woman. "Well, you wanted this job." Mie was dressed in flowing silk, her lavender hair was cropped short, and her eyes twinkled with mischief. "Yeah...now, I just gotta figure out what to do with it." "You have three ways of going about this." Mie nudged the corpse of the camera. "Make that two." "Why only two?" "Number one: Pity you wrecked this camera. It's got a Kirlian lens." Genichiro smacked his forehead. "Shimata..." "Number two: You can summon the dark spirits. Have them lead you to the strongest ki sources." "They usually want a share of the harvest for themselves." "Then number three: You can borrow Akara's crystal ball. I'm sure he wouldn't mind you taking it to Earth. It will show you images of the strongest ki source. I think you know the down side to that one." Genichiro gulped. "Have fun at your new job." Mie dissolved in a shimmer of lavender. Genichiro frowned in thought. "As long as the crystal ball remains intact, and as long as my mission succeeds, Akara can't fault me for using it." He smiled. "No problem!" * * * * * "How about this one, Ruri? It's really cute!" Ruri looked at the sad excuse for a dress that her mother was holding up. "I'd rather die." "Ruri! That's not very nice!" She hung the dress back on the rack. "Well, what do you think you should get?" "Something plain." Ruri picked up a black, pleated skirt. "This looks nice." Megumi winced. "That looks like something a Sailor Scout would wear." "No, this skirt is less revealing." She picked up another black skirt. "This one is nice, too." "Ruri, are you just gonna pick out black skirts? Maybe this..." Megumi grabbed an extremely short black leather miniskirt. "No, thank you. I'm not a martial artist." "Why would you have to be?" "I'd need to be to fight off the boys. If they see me in that..." Ruri shuddered. "Not to mention Yurika would pound me." "Oh." She hung up the miniskirt and reached for a yellow and orange plaid skirt. "No." Her mother walked up. "I've got some more clothes for you to try out, Ruri. I managed to find another of those blue dresses you like." She held it up. Ruri twitched. She recalled wearing that exact dress during the talent contest. Except that this one was real, not holographic. "I don't really have a choice here, do I?" "Nope!" Her mother grinned. "Some white blouses, a couple of white t-shirts. Some slacks, some shorts...Oh, and an orange vest to go with that black skirt. At least it'll add some colour." Ruri rolled her eyes. "Now, for sleepwear...How about this?" Usagi held up a Care Bear nightshirt. "More fuel." Usagi tsked. "Why do you never like my suggestions?" Megumi piped up. "She meowed at me this morning. Maybe she's got cats on the brain now. Instead of anime." Usagi picked up a set of brown pajamas, complete with slippers, gloves, ears and tail. "These'll keep you warm. Especially for our trip." "What trip?" "Silly! We're going out to the cottage for the rainy season!" Ruri blinked. "We have a cottage?" "Oh, that fever - you've forgotten! Yes, we have a small cottage by the lake. It's only got three rooms, an onsen and a small dock on the lake." "...Oh. Isn't there some sakura trees there, too? And a big, drooping willow?" "You do remember!" Ruri smiled. "It sounds like fun. But I have an idea." "What idea?" "Can I take a few friends?" "Ummm..." Her mother laughed. "It might get crowded." "I'll tell them that if they want to go, we have to take tents, and we'll sleep outside." "All right. That's a good idea. Who do you want to take?" "Megumi, Inez and Yurika." "Inez? Is she gaijin?" "Well, yes. But she doesn't have anywhere to go for her vacation." "Ummm...Can you think of someone else to take?" "Mom, Inez is really nice. She's very polite. You'll like her." "...Well, okay, I guess." But she didn't sound very enthusiastic. "Well, don't worry, Mom, she's not an American. She's Spanish." "At least she's not French. Those people have no modesty." Her mother shook her head. "We still have to get you a swim suit. How about a bikini?" Ruri was a touch concerned. She'd never considered that her mother might be racist. It was...disturbing. * * * * * Genichiro faded in with a spray of gold. The walls were hung with red tapestries, each bearing a silhouette of an insect. Before him was a massive marble scarab, carved to accomodate a person, as a throne. On either side of the throne was a brazier, and in front of it, a low-set crystal ball. Genichiro slowly looked around. The tapestries hung limply, the braziers dead to life. He carefully walked towards the crystal, the clacking of his boots on marble the only noise to be heard in the sepulchral vault. As he reached out towards the crystal, it began to glow faintly, reacting to his ki. "Yes...you are exactly what I need..." The glow illuminated his face as he knelt before the crystal. Gently, he lifted it from its golden cradle. Both the braziers sparked, and began to smoke. Genichiro stepped back, and glanced hurriedly over his shoulder. "I must be back quickly..." He turned, and shimmered into golden sparkle. * * * * * "Sugoi! This girl is great!" Megumi glanced over at Ruri. "What are you saying?" Ruri waved Megumi over. "Look at the work she's doing!" The artist was a tall individual, with waist-length pale hair, dressed in tight-fitting jeans and a pastel yellow pullover sweater with a doily collar. In one hand was a small blue airbrush, connected to a compact pump and air tank. The brush was fitted with a small jar of brown paint, which the artist was applying to a T-shirt. The image on the T was of a tundra wolf - all grey and silver, save for the eyes. The artist stepped back and surveyed the image. "Wow! I can't believe I got it that perfect!" Megumi cuffed Ruri. "Are you blind?" "What?" Ruri scowled at Megumi. "Isn't it great art?" "Not that." Megumi gestured at the artist. "That's a guy, not a girl." Ruri blinked. "Are you sure?" "Of course I'm sure." "How sure?" Ruri smiled slightly. Just slightly. "Well, I'll tell you what. If you're right, I'll buy you that Sailor Moon manga you were drooling over." "And if you're right?" "Mmmm...You have to buy me a really big sundae. And you can't have one of your own while I eat it." "Deal. Cruel, but deal." Ruri grabbed Megumi's arm and dragged her towards the artist. The artist set down the airbrush and turned as the two girls approached. "Sugoi! What cute little girls!" Ruri glanced back at Megumi. "It was Volume 34 I wanted." She turned back to the artist. "Hello, miss. You do lovely pictures." "Why thank you." The artist smiled. "Wait...aren't you Hoshino Ruri?" Ruri blinked. "Uh, yes. Why do you ask?" "The one who got caught cheating on a science test last week?" "I wasn't cheating." "Uh-huh." The artist nodded. "The same Hoshino Ruri who claims to have seen sunrise from Mare Tranquility?" "It was a picture..." Megumi broke in, giggling. "A picture in a manga, I bet. Oh, and you forgot, the same Hoshino Ruri who mistook you for a girl." Ruri stared at her feet. "Well, that's okay." The artist tilted his head. "I mistook her for a nine-year-old girl." He giggled. "It must be the lack of--" "Don't even think it." "--height." "Baka." Megumi piped up. "Or chest. So, Shun, could you paint me a picture?" Shun picked up the brush. "Sure. Hold still." "NO! I meant on a T-shirt--" "Okay." He leaned closer to her. "THIS T-shirt!" Megumi handed him a blank white T-shirt. "...Oh. Megumi-chan, you're no fun!" He pouted, grabbed the T-shirt and bounced over to the easel. "Megumi...are you really, *really* certain he's a guy?" "Well...no. But his records say he is." Ruri glared at her. "And where did you get his records?" "I paid attention in class. He sits in row 6, seat 2, just behind Jun." "...Oh." Megumi walked towards the nearest ice cream parlor. "Come on. You owe me a sundae." * * * * * Genichiro's arms were outstretched, and the crystal ball floated motionless between his hands. "I call upon the Eye of Jinchi. Show me the person who has reached his highest potential." The crystal flared to life, light flaring upward from it in a cone. Within the cone was the pale-haired artist, applying paint with his airbrush. Genichiro sneered. "I hardly think that this girl is worth our effort. Perhaps this was a bad idea." The crystal's light darkened, and a small lightning bolt snapped outward. Genichiro coughed, and hoped his hair would settle down before anyone saw him... "All right. I guess the crystal is never wrong." He turned to a Batto. "Go. Initiate the transformation." The Batto stared, eyes glowing blankly, then chirped once. Genichiro sighed. "Go to this mortal, and initiate a SuperGolem Transformation on her." The Batto remained motionless. Genichiro scowled at it, then paused. He turned back to the crystal. "Eye of Jinchi. Show me...where exactly this person is." * * * * * "Here you go, little girl." The attendant set the mother of all sundaes in front of Megumi, then turned to Ruri. "Are you sure you don't want anything?" "Yeah, I'm sure." Ruri sighed, her face propped up in her hands, her elbows on the table. "I'm...not hungry." Megumi chuckled. "Who said that?" She picked up the spoon. "Mmmm...this looks sooooooo good...I'm not sure where to start!" She picked the cherry off the top of the ice cream and studied it. "I bet it's gonna taste really good!" "I still don't believe that Shun is a guy!" "You could always take a bath with him..." "No thank you. I have Akito." "OH! So you've been bathing with Akito?" "Well...kinda." Megumi stared at her. "Kami-sama...you don't waste any time, do you?" She gulped down a spoonful of ice cream. * * * * * The Batto faded into view in the middle of the lobby. Several people noticed it, but generally ignored it. The Batto scanned the region quickly, then scuttled over to the art booth and ducked behind the compressor tank. Two small antennae flicked out from its head and touched the tank, and the Batto faded from view. Shun detached his brush from the tank and connected a different one. He had finished Megumi's shirt a while ago, and was on his sixth since then. For some reason, a lot of people had suddenly developed an interest in his shirts. Not to mention, he was cranking them out faster than he had before, and they looked so much better... He was really on a roll! * * * * * "Well, we are now in the black. We've covered the ki expenses for this operation, and we now have a steady flow into our reservoirs. Everything from here on in is simply bonus." "Chirp!" "And why am I talking to a Batto?" Genichiro shook his head. "Next thing, you know, I'll be telling it my evil plans." "Chirp!" "No, I have no evil plans." He sighed. "Oh, yes. I have to go disassemble a gun." * * * * * *BOOM* The windows of the ice cream parlor exploded inward. Ruri grabbed Megumi and dragged her down under the table. "Ruri! What's going on?" Megumi's eyes were wide with terror. "I don't know." ~Though I have a pretty good guess...~ "You stay here, I'll go try to find out what's happening. Okay?" Megumi nodded once. Ruri slid out from under the table and ran out of the store. "I need cover...need to change." She glanced over at the phone booth - a metal pole, with two thin metal walls on either side of the phone itself. "Perfect!" She ran for the phone booth, and grabbed one side, swinging herself around...into the serviceway behind it. One hand was already in her pocket, reaching for the Kasei no Henshin. "Mars Guardian, Make-UP!" The light seared her eyes, all blue and gold. The air around her rippled, and she felt waves of incredible heat pounding her. Her clothes shredded and re-formed into the blue skirt, tight-fitting golden bodysuit and long blue boots and gloves. The tiara formed on her brow, and the Henshin lengthened to quarterstaff proportions. She scrambled out of the serviceway...to see a massive humanoid form. It was easily eight feet tall, with long, pale hair down to its waist, a figure that was undeniably mammalian, and what appeared to be a giant airbrush in place of a lower right arm. It was completely naked, save for a few rags of yellow sweater and blue jeans, barely covering the important parts. "I knew it...I KNEW Shun was a girl...Distortion Field!" Ruri spun the staff in front of her. A glowing blue cloud formed all around her, then stabilized into a light blue sphere. The creature raised its arm and launched a gout of flame at her from the brush's nozzle. "Thinner Napalm!" Ruri ignored the attack, and it bounced harmlessly off of her Distortion Field. "It can't reach me...but I don't want it to get the bright idea to start attacking innocent people...plus, a bad ricochet will hurt people, as well." She pulled out the plasma pistol. "Sorry, Shun..." She took aim, and squeezed off a shot. And watched it bounce harmlessly off its Distortion Field. "Uh-oh..." The store patrons were milling about the battlefield in absolute terror. Ruri noticed that several dozen were lying on the floor, stirring weakly. All of them were wearing one of Shun's shirts... "Great. Another energy-sucking move from the Dark World." "Let me explain." "Huh?" Ruri turned to see Ai standing next to her. Yurika was standing past Ai. She stepped forward and pointed at the Golem. "To guard the world from devastation, to protect all people within--" *WHAM* "Ite!" "Thank you, Ruri." Ruri shouldered her quarterstaff. "Now then. You were going to explain?" Ai nodded. "The SuperGolem is a mixed construct, partially human, and partially spirit. The spirit component is the portion responsible for stealing ki. Destroy the spirit, and the Golem will revert to its original human form." "That's a marvellous idea, Ai. Now, how do you suggest we destroy the spirit without destroying the flesh?" "Ummm..." Yurika stood back up, still rubbing her head. "How about using the Distortion Field? Since your magical attacks pass right through it, it's probably permeable to spirits. Plus, you'll need your own Distortion Field to cancel out its Field." Ruri stared at her. "You had a good idea? Will wonders never cease?" "Hey!" Ruri turned to face the monster, staff raised. "Right. Let's finish this." She charged forward, staff ready. The creature raised its arm, preparing to sear her again. Ruri leapt at the monster. The Distortion Fields snarled and crackled as they interfered with each other. "The slow attack passes the Field..." Ruri extended her Distortion Field along the length of the staff, and slowly pushed it through the Golem's Field. She placed the staff against the monster's chest, and then thrust forward as hard as she could. Shun's body was knocked through the Field, rapidly reverting to normal. But the monster remained. But now it reached for her, bypassing the Field entirely. Yurika readied a Flame Arrow. "Ruri! Drop the Field! Now!" Ruri stepped back, and allowed the Field to collapse. "Flare Arrow!" Yurika raised the bow, and pulled back the string. A flaming arrow appeared at her fingertips. She aimed at the golem, and let it fly. "Particle Blast!" Ai swung the hammer, as though to throw it, and it blazed a bright golden. A crescent-shaped beam of energy formed, and flew across the room to slam into the Golem. Ruri held the quarterstaff in front of her, eyes closed. A wind began to swirl around her, and her hair fluttered, drawn out to its full length. She opened her eyes, swept the staff around her and brought it to rest, pointing directly at the Golem. "Gravity Blast!" A black field of energy formed around the tip of the staff, then flowed down to encompass Ruri completely. It swelled outward, and exploded into a cone of black energy. The Golem Spirit howled in pain, and dissipated. Ruri lowered the staff, gasping for air, then quickly moved to check on Shun. The artist was moaning slightly, a mass of bruises, and Ruri could tell at a glance that there was very little ki left in the artist. She looked him up and down quickly. "Wow. Megumi was right..." She shook her head. "That's really disturbing." She stood, and turned to leave. "Wait!" Yurika ran up to her. "What was that thing?" "I have no idea." She shook her head. "But I think it's their new weapon. I gotta get back to Megumi." * * * * * Megumi was seated at the table, eating her ice cream as though nothing had happened. Ruri grinned slightly as she sat down. Megumi looked up. "So what was all that?" "Nothing." "Oh." Megumi turned back to her ice cream. "The manager gave me a second sundae. I figured you'd want it. So I ate it." "Baka..." Ruri rolled her eyes. "And you were right about Shun." "What do you mean." "He's definitely male." "Oh? Why the change of attitude?" "Ummm...I saw physical proof." Megumi stared at her. "Okay, you've gone way beyond ditz. All the way to hentai." * * * * * Author's Notes: To our utter horror, we realized that we'd never actually paid any attention to Ruri's song in Episode 19 of Nadesico. So we paid more attention to it...and promptly became even more horrified. To share the horror (for those that don't know/can't remember the song:) --- "I want to be your number one" Ruri's song from the the talent contest, Ep. 19 Keeping the feelings that I can't put in words The feeling towards you grows in my heart But I almost weep because of my heart-rending sorrow Your eyes looking at your girlfriend / Don't ever seem to change But for a while / Only for a while / Please look at me If I had met you before anyone else I wonder if I'd have fallen in love / As I feel / As I hope Once again, / If I were reborn and met you once again I want to be your number one at that time --- Honestly! We hadn't seen the lyrics when we scripted this sucker! Sorry about missing a week, but we were all in mourning over the death of Tsukumo. Also, it was bloody hot and humid here for a week, so bad that TailKinker (who hails from the Arctic) nearly collapsed, and Kitsy was shedding all over the place. Hopefully, this shall not happen again. Here we go, back to the Stock Footage Locker: Comments and Criticism can be sent to kitsy@home.com or to tailkinker@home.com. The story is archived at www.geocities.com/groves_ca and at members.home.net/kitsy. There is a mailing list for the story; to subscribe, send mail to tailkinker@home.com with `subscribe mgpr' in the subject heading. Guest Crossovers/Snipes for this episode include (but are not limited to) Hello Kitty, Dune, Superman, Care Bears and Here Is Greedwood. Until next time, drive safe, and remember: Just when you are absolutely, *positively* certain of a person's gender...you're probably wrong. Ja ne!