Cherry felt that if she focused hard enough on the little oval birthmark on her thumb she could forget for a second. And for that second she was lost in her own world, and no one could reach her. It was then, and only then, that Cherry was happy. She'd smile a queer sort of smile at her finger, confirming a secret that no one else knew, that no one else dared confirm. After a while she would stay lost in that world, lost so deep that she couldn't get out, couldn't tell the lies from the truth.
Cherry. What a funny name for a funny girl. The kids at school would laugh at her name when they ran out of things to laugh about. The way she talked, sometimes stopping in the middle of a sentence, only to begin another one about something completely different. The way she walked, swaying or skipping or sliding along, her bright red high tops skidding along the black tar of the playground. The way she'd smile and laugh along with the boys who called her retarded and the girls who called her slow. It was the girls who were the worst, whispering about her when they thought she wasn't listening, laughing at her when she ran to third base instead of first in kick ball, then cried. They were like a pack of birds, they chattered ceaselessly, and didn't believe that she ever noticed. They violated her privacy in a way that was easy and efficient.
She had always been an odd girl. She had believed in Santa way too long, played with her Barbies until she was ten, still thought that Nickelodeon was "cool" for the eighth grade. She bought clothes that were just a little too baggy, or a little too bright, or a little too "immature." Her hair was always back in two greasy braids that stuck out too much and made her ears look large. It wasn't that she wasn't pretty, it was that she didn't know how to be pretty. She tried, but always failed. No one was her friend. Yes, people would be nice to her, a sick attempt to stop the guilt of feeling sorry for her and yet doing nothing. But in a day or two Cherry would be the past, an attempted mission, and a lost cause. She'd go back to her corner of the blacktop, stare at her thumb, and laugh away the world.

* * * * * * * *

I wake up with a large ring of sweat around my nightgowns neckline, the remains of a nightmare still ringing in my ears. I brush my hair back from my face, it is very long hair, and very beautiful. I have a best friend named Melissa. She is very pretty too, but her hair is shorter than mine, and blonder too. She says that I have the most beautiful hair she has ever seen. She says it is so beautiful that I should be a model in one of those expensive magazines that mummy always buys at the store. I told her that I was glad she was my best friend because no one else seems to notice my hair at school, although I wear it so wonderfully everyday in the latest styles, but everyone just stares at me and how pretty I am, though they never say anything. Sometimes..sometimes I think that they are laughing at me, but they tell me that they are just laughing with me. I told them that was just fine then, and that we could all laugh and be best friends and have a great..a great time together because we were best friends. SO you see, I really have lots of friends. I'm really very popular and everyone loves me. I have beautiful hair, and everyone loves me. I have a best friend named Melissa.
I walk over to my mirror and look at my reflection. My hair is tangled and I have eye crusties rimming my dull hazel eyes. I blink hard, and look in the mirror again. Staring back at me are my beautiful baby blue eyes that look just like the models eyes in the magazines. I reach over to my makeup that my mum bought for me yesterday night at the store when we went out for groceries. I had to beg her for it, it would make me look so beautiful. I apply some of the beautiful makeup onto my lips and smack them loudly like my mumma always does. My mum walks in the door and asks me how I'm doing. I put on a second coat, and say to her that I'm putting on my lipstick, but I have to say li-stick, because I don't want to stop applying the second coat. My mumma frowns at me and I don't know why. Maybe it's because she doesn't want me wearing makeup yet. I see her eyes fill with tears and I run to her and wrap my arms around her neck. She smells so sweet and wonderful, and she's so pretty, just like me. I tell her not to cry, that I will become a movie star and a model and everyone will love me. Everyone will love me. Love. Me. They do. And then I smile, and suddenly I'm confused, but it all ends when I think about my hair, and how I have to put it up in a beautiful new style before school, so I ask my mumma to leave so I can get ready, and she does, but she is still crying.
I walk back over to my dresser and take my beautiful new makeup and put it in it's case again. I will take it to school today, I will show it to all my friends, and they will think it is so pretty and so beautiful and they will all love me. I will only let Melissa use it though. Melissa is my best friend.

* * * * * * * *

She walks into class, and everyone fixes her with a blank, empty look. A few snicker at her plaid jumper and her uncomfortable looking knee socks. They are a little to big for her scrawny legs, one has slid down considerably lower than the other, giving her a lopsided and messy look. Her hair has frizzed during the walk from the car to the classroom, the rain has mussed it up and the air has entangled it. The pigtails look like twisted coat hangers. She smiles uncomfortably at the sea of staring faces, then looks at her red sneakers, maybe in shame, maybe just because she thinks they are pretty. She lifts her head up, sticks her chin high in the air, and says good morning, before hurrying into her assigned seat. Sitting beside her is a girl named Jamie. Perfect figure, curved in all the right places, face blemish free, and body utterly petite, Jamie is an absolute goddess and an absolute snob. She turns to Cherry and regards her presence with a look of disgust.
"Do you ever shower?" There is no reply from the sullen looking girl beside her, who sits sunken in her chair, staring at her thumb with a look of complete concentration.
"Cherry! Look at me when I'm talking to you" The girl emulates the way her mother talks to her when addressing Cherry, and the effect is a purely evil statement, although probably that was what was intended. "I said, do you ever take a shower?"
By now a group of on lookers has huddled around the two desks. They snicker, and one boy pulls on her pigtail hard enough to make her look up from her thumb and frown at him. Jamie asks again, persistent at getting the reaction she wants, and knowing she will.
"Don't you know who I am?" The words startle the group of tireless kids, they laugh at the silly, silly question that has been posed before them. One of them says that she is a freak, and it brings timid laughter to the click of bullies.
"I am the most popular girl in this school. You are all my friends. Don't you remember?" Silence fills the classroom as the clan sits, confused, waiting for someone to break the silence, waiting for someone to break the spell.
"You can look at my makeup if you want to, you can see it if you want. You, you can't use it though, only Melissa and I can use it." And she pulls out a white plastic case with a broken ziper, and then reaches her fragile hand into the case and emerges with a tube of pink lipstick. She hands it to Jamie, who takes it without really understanding that she has. Then she takes of the cover, and looks at it. She looks confused for a second, and then an odd look glimmers through her eyes. Suddenly a smile spreads over her face, and she has to reach up and cover her mouth to keep from laughing. She rubs the tip of the lipstick over wide, smiling lips.
"Isn't...isn't it pretty? Don't you just like it a lot?" Cherry's lip quivers as Jamie whispers something to the girl beside her and she stares at Cherry in disbelief and then begins to laugh too. Her laugh is wicked, piercing. Cherry hears it as though it is far away, but soon it is closer and it's going straight through her, and she is not sure, anymore, that she really is who she thinks she is. The laughter disarms her, leaves her naked in shame. She doesn't understand, she doesn't want to understand. Why are they laughing? Why?
"What an IDIOT!" One boy has said it, and pretty soon everyone is yelling at her, and she can hear them now, their voices are so sharp she is sure that they are cutting her. She can feel the stings on her arms, and the cold imprint they are leaving, and she folds her legs up close to her and holds them. Then she rocks, slowly, and stares at her thumb..and cries. She knows they don't get it. She knows they will never, never get it. And their words fall on her until she crumbles out of the desk and falls to the floor. Then the teacher yells, and they crawl back to their caves, their prey is taken down and they are well fed. Someone throws her case of lipstick in the garbage.
"What an idiot," Jamie whispers to the defeated form that was once Cherry, lying below her. "What kind of an idiot brings plastic makeup to school?"

* * * * * * * *

I did not have a good day today. All my friends were jealous of my new makeup. They all got mad at me, and we got in a fight. I..I won though, they have decided that I am really the one who is right, they can see that I am nice and pretty, and that I have beautiful hair. They threw my makeup away though, an attempt to make me look less pretty so they don't feel ugly. They think I am too beautiful. I think you can never be too beautiful.
Melissa and I played together at recess. She said that my hair looked really pretty today. She said that she would have loved to have put on some of my beautiful makeup, but she understood that they had thrown it away because..because they were jealous. Then she gave me some new makeup and things to wear in my hair and a Cinderella dress, and everyone loved me and clapped and cheered. They lifted me up on their shoulders and carried me around the playgroud and chanted my name. Cherry! Cherry!
All my friends have boyfriends. I have a boyfriend too. He loves me very much. His name is, um, his name is Jeff. He has bright blue eyes just like me, and wavy blonde hair and he looks just like prince charming, or just like Ken sometimes. I think he is so cute, and he loves me very much.
Today at school there was a poster up that said there was a dance this Friday. Jeff said that he would take me to the dance, and that we could go with Melissa and her boyfriend too. I will wear my cool new dress that Melissa gave me today at recess, and I will do my hair extra pretty, and I will look just like a princess.
My mum asks me where my new toys are. I don't know what she means. When she says my makeup I have to laugh at her, she can be so silly sometimes. I tell her that she should know the difference between makeup and toys, toys are something you play with! Then she just looks sad and I think I have hurt her feeling but I'm not sure. I tell her that I am sorry, and I go over to her and pat her head. Then I just bury my head in her chest and close my eyes, and the whole day comes crashing down. For a second I feel like crying, like just plain sobbing, and then I remember all my friends and Melissa, and I sniff and feel better. I tell mum that the kids at school were so jealous of my new makeup that they threw it away, and she holds me and whispers that I am her sweet little baby and that one day everything will be okay. I tell her it is already. It is. It...it is already. It's already okay.

* * * * * * * *

Outside it is a gray sky day, the rain beats on the living room roof. Cherry sits on the couch, tapping her feet on the coffee table. She munches on her dinner, chicken rice and broccoli, and feels the weight of the day sink in to her stomach along with the food. When her mother looks up at her she smiles, and her mom smiles back in an absent minded sort of way. Her mother asks her how she's feeling, and you can see the concern sort of welling up inside her, her furrowed brow, her timid demeanor. She doesn't know what to think about her daughter, what to do. What to believe. She knows that Cherry is different, that she thinks differently than other children. She tells her about all her friends, one in particular, Melissa, her best friend. Mother wonders why she has never met Melissa, is there..is there..is there..repeats in her head. Is there a Melissa? Is there a Cherry?

* * * * * * * *

The lights are so bright and the music is so loud. When I told mum that I was going to a dance her eyes lit up and she said that it was good that I was going. I said yes, it was good. But now the lights are very bright and it is not feeling very good. Everyone is looking at me and pointing. I can't...I can't find Jeff. I can't find him. I am spinning around and I can't find him anywhere. Where is Melissa? Everyone is pointing. Everyone is laughing. LOVE! LOVE ME! JEFF, WHERE IS JEFF!

* * * * * * * *

Children watch in delight as the girl spins in the center of the crowded gym, the centerpiece of everyone's attention, the silly looking girl who is screaming, crying. It is too much, they cannot help but laugh. She is helpless, she is alone. No one is coming, no one is helping, she is lost. Cherry is lost.
Then she's pulling her hair, pulling it until she holds a fistful of it, and there is blood, and people start to get scared you know, when there is blood. She kneels on the floor, her awkward knobby knees pressed hard against the cold, polished wood. Her face is twisted, there is a bald spot on her head where the clump of hair once was, and she is pulling more out and screaming, screaming. Her scream in wild, crazy, like a deranged animal. The crowd pulls away, they don't want her anymore. She makes them uncomfortable. And then she is running, through the crowd, pushing, bleeding, and they pull away in disgust. Cherry! Cherry! They chant her name, chanting her away, away. Away.

* * * * * * * *

RuN. rUn. RuN. rUn.

I, I've got to follow Melissa. I've got to follow...who? Who is she? Who am I? Right. Right, right. Melissa. She loves me. She is my best friend. I am beautiful. She loves me. She. Loves. Me. Oh mummmy, oh mummy, HELP! HELP MUMMY, THEY ARE CHASING ME! OH, I MUST FOLLOW MELISSA. OH IT IS COLD AND IT IS RAINING. HELP! HELP! OH I AM RUNNING AWAY AND IT IS RAINING AND I AM COLD AND MY DRESS IS WET. OH. GOD. HELP. THE LIGHT, THE LIGHT IS SO BRIGHT. MELISSA? OH POOR MUMMY, SHE WILL BE SAD. MUMMY DON'T CRY. MUMMY, HELP...

* * * * * * * *

They run after her, some of them. It is raining, and she is running, running, running. She trips and falls in the mud and she is covered in it, but she keeps running..keeps..screaming. She is screaming, help, help, Melissa, and they are all confused. Confused. Confused. They know no Melissa. No one knows her, she doesn't exsist.
They look on in horror as she runs into the road and then falls, slowly, onto the pavement. And the car, there is a car coming, but she stays in the road. One runs, tries to push her out of the way, but it is too far. Too far. Too late. She screams, but it is lost in the rain. Cherry. Cherry is lost.
When the ambulance comes it is too late. They put her small mangaled body in a white bag and lay it out of the stretcher. Her mother sobs while the rain pours down, down. There is an energy in the air, a crazy energy, it is left over from Cherry. Cherry has reached her breaking point, and the people know it. Everyone knows she died...broken. Cherry was lost. Cherry was broken. Broken.

*The End *

 

 

 

 

 

The mad scientist, her hair frizzed at least a foot in every direction, rubbed her hands maniacally as she watched the pale yellow bubble float up to the surface of the hot red liquid. Tonight was the night. Years of research had finally paid off, and she was soon to realize her goal. Already, she was rehearsing the speech she would give when they gave her the Nobel Peace Prize.

As she stared at the strange brew before her, a hunched figure stirred from the shadows. A young man, his back bent and twisted, lurched toward the mad scientist. When he was finally beside her, he croaked, Master! The mad scientist, dreaming of a world at her feet, did not even hear him. The man cleared his throat, and in a much clearer voice, said again, MASTER!

Dr. Samantha Master shook herself from her daze. What?! she demanded, irritated from being stirred from her daydream. You got hypnotized by the lava lamp again. he replied. Dr. Master looked at the lava lamp sitting at her desk and laughed, So I did. Thanks, Bob. She glanced over to her assistant and whistled, Wow. Did you pull your back out again? Bob nodded mournfully. Well, here, lets straighten you up. Dr. Master put her fist against the small of Bobs back as he straightened. His popping spine sounded like a machine gun, but at last he was able to stand. Thank you, Master he said. Dr. Master patted him on the back, No problem, Bob. Now, lets get to work!

The two stood before the contraption that Dr. Master had built so many years ago. In the center of shiny red buttons, tubes, wires, flashing lights, and leather strapping (dont ask), was a silver, egg-shaped container. Think of it, Bob, she murmured, every year, at Easter, parents give their children bunny rabbits. But the children almost never keep the poor bunnies. They either dont take care of them, or they wind up selling them back to the pet shop. Its not fair. Just because a bunny isnt a traditional pet! How do we solve this dilemma, Bob? Bob opened his mouth to answer, but Dr. Master continued her ranting, I tell you how, Bob! By making the bunny cuter! Well make the bunny so cute and fluffy that no child will be able to resist having one! The bunny will replace dogs and cats! Everyone will want a bunny! Everyone, I say! Bob watched as Dr. Master rubbed her hands together. Uh, Masterarent bunny rabbits already really cute and fluffy? Dr. Masters eyes began to blink rapidly, and Bob watched as her face convulsed into three or four different expressions. This went on for a minute or so. Finally, she replied with, Shut up, Bob! Bob lowered his head, Sorry, Master.

Dr. Master began punching buttons, and the contraption began to hum and vibrate. As she did so, Bob leaned in closer to Dr. Masters ear. You know, he said, its a really nice night tonight. Theres even a full moon. How about after we finish with the experiment, you and I go out to Lookout Point? Dr. Master, not really paying attention to Bob, grunted out her reply, Uh, yeah, sure, whatever. Bob continued, Great! Then after that, lets elope. I want you to have my children. Dr. Master, oblivious, nodded her head, Sounds good, Bob. Put that on my calendar, will you? Just then, the seal broke open on the container.

This is it! Dr. Master cried, My moment of glory! Bob and Dr. Master stared as the lid raised. Bob gasped. Oh, my God! he shouted as he looked inside, It worked, Master! Dr. Master was laughing as any good mad scientist should, Mwua-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

The rabbit was truly the most irresistibly adorable bunny that ever existed. It's long silken ears lay luxuriously against the rabbit's thick, soft fur. They watched as the bunny looked up at them with its huge eyes, the light reflecting perfectly from them. Bob, unable to resist himself, reached into the container to pet the lovely creature. Wait! shouted Dr. Master as she grabbed Bobs hand. Startled, Bob asked her, What is it, Master? Whats wrong? Dr. Master smiled, I get to pet it first! Its my experiment. Bob, rolling his eyes, snatched his hand away. Dr. Master began to reach inside the container to pick up the bunny. Just as she did, the bunny began to transform.

The bunnys huge eyes began to narrow to evil slits. Its delicate little nose grew longer, larger, and its soft and fluffy hair began to bristle and tangle. The now menacing bunny opened its mouth to reveal sharp, pointy teeth. Growling, the bunny prepared to leap out from the container.

***

The next day, little Sally was reading the comics in the newspaper while she sat at breakfast, nibbling on a piece of toast.

Her mother sighed as she sat down next to her, "Honey, I wish you wouldn't read the paper at the table." She took the paper away from Sally, neatly folding it and setting it down.

"Aw, Mom. Daddy always reads the paper at breakfast."

Her mother wasn't paying attention as she noticed the headlines on the front page for the first time. Mysterious lab accident leaves two dead. She began reading the story, muttering softly to herself, "Why, that's at the University, just down the street..."

"Hey!" Sally glared at her mother, "Now you're reading the paper at the table. No fair!" No longer hungry, Sally pushed her plate away and got up, heading towards the front door. If Mother wasn't going to pay attention to her, she'd just go outside and play with Jessie, her next door neighbor.

As Sally opened the door, she emitted a little shriek of delight. Sitting on the front porch looking up at her was the most irresistibly adorable bunny she'd ever seen. Sally reached her hand out to pet it...

and it jumped into her arms.

"Ooooo!" Sally said,  "Mommy, can we keep it?!"

Sally's mother was still reading the paper. You could hear her murmuring,"...bunnies...killed...on the loose..."

"MOMMY!" Sally exclaimed at the top of her lungs.

Sally's mom jumped and looked up at Sally.

"Can we keep it Mommy?" Sally asked.

Sally's mom looked at the black little bunny. As she glanced over the bunny's red eyes she said:

"I guess so Sally" She responded. The bunnies eyes became slender slits and nostrils flared in delight. The family left the room for a second to prepare it a bed. When they returned it was gone.

Sally...now see what happens when you leave the front door open? The mother closed the door and the family sat down for dinner.

Sally cried in her chair "I wanted the bunny momey." was all that she could say. Meanwhile Daddy was carving the turkey for everyone. He took the knife skillfully slicing a piece from the breast. The meat fell aside and Daddy passed it to his little Sally. About that time the Turkey took on the appearance of Mr. Spock from the Star Trek series. Long pointed ears poked out one side. Just as the daddy was poised to carve another piece...the turkey leaped into mid air and his knocked the carving knife backwards. It sliced through the top of Mommys hair. She immediately looked at her husband in a state of shock and replied.
 
I thought you liked this hair-do you bastard! The husband had no time to speak as she hurled the large butcher knife burying it deep in his skull. The heated excitement of the violence the poor bunny had just witnessed brought on a metamorphic change. Its breathing deepened and it grew hair everywhere. Yes...Even there. It developed large muscles so much so that the turkey burst from around it. The wishbone pinned The daddy to the wall, forever a fixture in modern art. The little girl saw the results and ran outside screaming.

 When the police arrived...they entered a surreal scene never before witnessed in the anals of police work.

Officer Bob looked at the grisly scene.... What do you think? Picasso?

After that they looked for the Rabbit but they only found the wife. "It was the rabbit!" she cried. "I swear it!"

As far as the police could tell, though, there had been no rabbit. There was only an insane, murderous wife, her dead husband, and their distraught (to say the least) daughter. But...

Far in the depths of the back yard, hidden deep in the shadows of the small bushes, the werebunny watched with its sinister slit-eyes. It chuckled, satisfied with its infectious evil nature. What should it do next? It contemplated killing Sally, but that would might look suspicious, now that the mom was in custody. The rabbit may be insane and quite possibly rabid, but it wasn't stupid, damnit!

Just then, the bunny felt a harsh hand on its fur. "Gotcha!"

The rabbit turned, an evil red light glinting in its eyes, which faded as the rabbit took in the large man with the heavy build who now held it in a choking grip.

However savagely evil you are, if you're the size of a football, attacking in these situations is not the smartest thing to do. The rabbit then used its second sinister power bestowed upon it. It gazed up at the mans brutish face with huge liquid eyes and an expression of imbecilic trust on its furry face, imitating every fifties B-movie heroine since the dawn of time. Apart from the fur.

Then it wrinkled up its cute fickle nose and fluttered its long eyelashes (Do rabbits have eyelashes?). The man was doomed as he had been from the first moment he had dared to lay hands upon this demonic creature. He took it home to give it to his kids.

That evening the man's two children, Jenny and Mikey, came home from soccer practice to find a big cage adorned with a shiny red bow sitting on the kitchen table. The Werebunny sat sullenly in the cage, oblivious to the kids' excited shrieks of delight.

"Daddy! Daddy! A bunny! You got us a bunny!" eight-year-old Jenny squealed, throwing her arms around her pleased father. "Such a cute bunny, too! I'm going to name her Fluffy!"

"Well, honey, I think the little fella's a boy," her father explained, a bit embarrassed. "I don't think he'd like to be called Fluffy. Why don't we think of a different name?"

Mikey, who was two years older than his sister, marched up to the cage and peered inside. The Werebunny peered back at him, twitched his cute little nose, and shook his head so that his silky, adorable ears flopped around charmingly. "Yo, bunny man!" Mikey said, poking his finger into the cage. "I think we should call you Slugs. Ya know, like Bugs Bunny, only gross."

He waggled his suntanned finger around in the cage. The Werebunny resisted the urge to bite the little brat. Maybe later, he thought sadistically. Instead, the Werebunny allowed the boy to tug at his ears and thump him a couple of times on his nose.

"Eeeew! Slugs Bunny? That's stupid. I wanna call him Fluffy! That's a cool name, even for a boy bunny!" Jenny was screeching. She folded her arms across her chest and stared defiantly at her brother. Obviously, the "name the bunny" battle wasn't going to come to an end anytime soon.

"All right. Enough bickering, kids," said their mother, who had just entered the kitchen. "Listen, your father and I cleared out a space on the back porch for the bunny's cage. Why don't you take Fluffy or Slugs or whatever you want to call him out there? I need to start getting supper ready."

"No! I wanna keep him in MY room!" Jenny complained, scowling.

"The bunny stays outside, or we take him to your Uncle Peter's farm," her father said firmly. "Now do as your mother says, kids. Take your new friend outside."

Still protesting, the kids each grabbed a side of the cage and took the Werebunny outside, where a spot was waiting on the covered porch. "I'm gonna sneak him in my room tonight," Jenny confided to her brother, squatting by the cage and looking in at the precious bunny.

"Whatever," Mikey said. He was already losing interest in the bunny. Man, why couldn't Dad have brought home some rats? Or a skunk. Something cool, not like this sissy bunny rabbit! He kicked at the cage with his sneaker. "Dumb rabbit," he said. "If my sister likes you so much, you're definitely not all that!"

"Shut UP, moron!" Jenny howled. She stood up and pushed her brother, and the two of them got into one of their famous shouting matches. Finally, their parents had to some outside and drag them into back into the house. The Werebunny, for the time being, was forgotten.

Or at least he thought he'd been forgotten. Little did the Werebunny know that something had been peeking at him from within the bushes of the family's back yard. Once the coast was clear of humans, the something hopped up to the Werebunny's cage and looked inquisitively inside.

The Werebunny's evil little heart began to pound with a new emotion. Staring in at him was the most beautiful girl bunny in the whole, entire world. She was covered with soft, thick, white fur, and her eyes sparkled with desire. The Werebunny felt the same way as she obviously did. Love at first sight!

Unspoken messages flashed between the two bunnies as Girlbunny placed her pink nose beneath the latch of the cage and pushed it up. The Werebunny, seeing that the door was now unlatched, pushed it open and hopped out. He wouldn't show his evil side to Girlbunny. No. He didn't want to scare away the mother of his future Werebunny children!

He tentatively hopped over to Girlbunny and nuzzled her pretty pink nose with his own. She blinked happily and let the Werebunny playfully chase her out of the back yard, through the suburban streets, and into a dense thicket of trees on the outskirts of town.

***

Inspector Gadget Reynolds looked up as the evil, high-pitched howl reverberated through his open window. Thats strange, he thought to himself, I never heard a dog howl like that before. The howl ended before he could focus on its direction, and with a shake of his head, he returned to his paperwork. Three grisly murders in two daysa record for the small University town he lived in. Not that the murders posed any real challenge. The latest was obviously a whacked-out woman wanting insurance money. The University murders also involved a missing science project, and Inspector Gadget Reynolds chalked it up to a research rival. Open and shut, both of them. When was he ever going to get a challenge?

Inspector Gadget Reynolds looked at the crime scene photos for the University murders and shivered. It wasnt the blood caked walls or the miscellaneous body parts scattered across the floor that caused him discomfort. Rather, it was the fairly innocuous-sounding statement typed at the bottom of the photo. Missing: One rabbit. A rabbit. Why did the murders have to involve a rabbit? Inspector Gadget Reynolds slammed the photograph face-down on his desk, his skin practically crawling off his bones. Ever since that summer on his Grandparents farm

The inspector was interrupted from his reverie when Officer Bob knocked on his door. What! he exclaimed irritably. Sir, there is someone here to see you. He says its urgent. He says he has some info about the University murders. Inspector Gadget Reynolds motioned with his hand, and Officer Bob stood aside to let the visitor in. The visitor, his hair frizzed out at least a foot in every direction, shoved past Officer Bob and immediately shouted, Inspector! We are all in terrible danger! We must act quickly before more lives are lost! Officer Bob, eager to let the inspector deal with the nut case, left the room and shut the door behind him. Gee, thanks Bob, thought Inspector Gadget Reynolds.

Sighing, Inspector Gadget Reynolds leaned back in his chair and replied to his visitors bold statement, All right, all right. Lets start from the beginning, OK? First of all, who are you, and what does this have to do with the University murders? Energetically, the man answered, Oh, sorry! My name is Dr. Samuel Master. Im Dr. Samantha Masters twin brother. Uh, were fraternal twins. The inspector nodded his head, OK, Dr. Master Dr. Master waved his hand at Inspector Gadget Reynolds, Oh, no, Inspector. You dont have to be so formal with me. You can just call me Master. Inspector Gadget Reynolds blinked. Doctor, could you please get to the point? Dr. Master began pacing, Of course! Of course, what am I thinking! Time is precious, it may already be too late. Im here about my sisters research project. She was trying to genetically engineer the perfect bunny rabbit, and Im afraid it might have gone awry. Dr. Master paused to slam his fist on Inspector Gadget Reynolds desk, I TOLD that nut that pig and elephant DNA just dont mix! Use otter DNA I told her. But would she listen to me? No! She never listened to me! Im 2 minutes older, but she thought she knew more than me! And now thisshes dead and her perfect little bunny is on the loose and killing! We must stop it, Inspector! We must!

In spite of himself, Inspector Reynolds shivered at the mention of a psychopathic bunny. But, as he was not very inclined to be the laughingstock of the police force, the inspector decided to get a grip on the situation. Whoa, whoa. Now just hold on one minute. Are you trying to tell me that this rabbit killed your sister and her assistant? Happy to be dealing with someone who understood him, Dr. Master began jumping up and down with excitement. YES! Inspector, yes, that is EXACTLY what Im trying to tell you! We have to organize a search party immediately. We must capture the bunny! Capture the bunny, I say! Dr. Master was beginning to worry the inspector. Now, just hold on, Doctor. Alright, for arguments sake lets say that youre right, and theres a killer rabbit on the loose. But do we really need to organize a huge search party? I mean, there is game on tonight, and its only one little bunny. We could put up pictures, put out an alert to the public

Dr. Master shrieked laughter and began pulling on his hair, Pictures! An alert! Inspector, Im afraid that just wont cut it! Dont you understand? Dont you get it? Dr. Master began pacing again, One little bunny he says. ONE LITTLE BUNNY! I know what youre thinking. What harm can one little bunny do? Well, Ill tell you Inspector. Ill tell you what harm one little bunny can do. Dr. Master paused his pacing to lean close to the inspector. Inspector, surely youve heard the expression Fu

Dr. Master was cut off midsentence as Officer Bob hit him on the back of the head with a blackjack. Unconscious, Dr. Master slumped to the floor. Whew! exclaimed Inspector Gadget Reynolds, I owe you one, Bob. Officer Bob shrugged, No problem, sir. I heard him ranting and raving down the hall, figured you could use a hand. What was he talking about, anyway? Inspector Gadget Reynolds stood and began collecting his things. Only a half hour before the game started! I have no idea, he replied to Officer Bobs question, I just know that this man is completely deranged. Stick him in the cell with that other wacko, the woman that offed her husband. They can sit there and entertain each other with bunny stories all night long. Officer Bob grabbed Dr. Masters feet and began dragging him down the hall. Whatever you say, sir!

Later that night Inspector Gadget Reynolds tossed and turned in his sleep. He was having the dream again, and as always it seemed so real. Reynolds was a young boy again, spending the summer at his Grandparent's farm. He had met the girl of his dreams that summer; she was a young girl named Sally who lived down the road, and late one night Reynolds had sneaked off to be with her.

They had met down by the small stream that ran behind his Grandparent's farm, and after walking for a while, they decided to rest at the edge of a vast cornfield.

This was where the dream always turned weird. Instead of reliving his first kiss with Sally, they heard a noise, far off in the cornfield, and immediately they ducked down.

"What is it, Linus?"

"Sssshhhh!!! Reynolds looked at Sally for a moment, then turned as the dark figure slowly rose from out of the cornfield.

A low voice rumbled towards them. "I am the Great Pumpkin. Follow me and all your dreams will be fulfilled."

Reynolds and Sally found themselves floating in the air, following the Great Pumpkin as he flew, faster and faster, towards the middle of the cornfield. Suddenly he disappeared, descending into the corn, and as Reynolds and Sally approached they saw a small clearing. Snoopy was there, dancing in the middle of a ring formed by bunny rabbits, who were also dancing.

"Bunnies!" Sally shrieked with delight as she flew into their midst. The bunnies stopped dancing as they looked up at her, and a few moments later they leapt up, snarling viciously as they attacked her.

She looked at Reynolds, her eyes pleading as she screamed, but all he could do was stand there, paralyzed with fear. Suddenly the bunnies were chasing him, flying in the air with Snoopy at the lead, laughing maniacally. Reynolds ran as fast as he could, but it felt like he was going in slow motion, and no matter what he did he couldn't speed up.

Suddenly a hole appeared in front of him, and Reynolds found himself falling, faster and faster, unable to stop. He finally hit the bottom of the hole, and standing up he brushed himself off. Reynolds looked around. He was in a small hallway, lined with doors, and sitting on a small table was a plate with a slice of cake, and a note laying beside it. Scrawled on the note was the message Eat me.

Suddenly Reynolds woke up, amazed to find himself at home in bed. He shook his head, "I hate that dream!"

The next morning, Dr. Samuel Master had calmed down considerably, so he was released. "Police brutality!" Master muttered as he stomped down the front steps of the police station. "I could have you buffoons arrested for this, you know." He rubbed the side of his head, which was still smarting from its encounter with Officer Bob's blackjack. "I was only trying to warn you about the bunny --"

"Aw, save it for your shrink!" Reynolds interrupted. The word bunny sent a chill down his spine. He remembered his nightmare and gulped. That dream had been crazy enough for him! He didn't need to hear the ranting of this frizzy-haired lunatic!

"I don't need a shrink, fool," Master responded, getting into his beat-up old car. "You're the one who needs psychological evaluation for not believing me. Once you see for yourself what that bunny can do, you'll find yourself blubbering away in a padded cell!" He flashed Reynolds a dirty look before gunning the motor and speeding off down the road.

Reynolds stared after him, his mouth agape.

********

THE NOT-SO-DISTANT FUTURE

Dr. Master sat on the front porch of his little house in the countryside, the morning paper spread across his knees. Ever since the scene at the police station, the news had been free of grisly murders. Today was no exception. "Thank goodness," Master muttered to himself as he scanned the benign headlines. "Maybe that Werebunny ended up as road kill. We can only hope!"

Finished with his morning coffee, Master put the paper down and stood up. "What a glorious day!" he said, raking a hand through his frizzed-out mane of hair. "I think I'll go for a walk! Nothing nicer than a brisk stroll on a morning such as this!"

He grabbed his fashionable white lab coat from the chair beside him and put it on as he began his leisurely walk. His house was very isolated, and he was glad for that. He didn't want nosy neighbors poking around the many experiments he conducted on a regular basis!

Beyond that, though, he simply enjoyed the dense thickets of trees and natural vegetation that surrounded his modest home. He considered this a reality check after dabbling all day in things that defied (and in some cases, defiled) nature. Therefore, he enjoyed these walks, where his only companion was Mother Nature herself.

Today, though, things seemed different. An almost-sinister veil of silence hung over the wooded area through which Master was now walking. Every now and then, he heard an odd rustle, rustle, but he couldn't determine the source of the noises. "Hello?" he called out, his voice uncertain. "Is anyone there?"

No response except for more rustling, which seemed even louder and closer than before.

Master stood silently, his eyes straining to find whatever was making that spooky sound. He didn't know he was being watched from all directions. Little red eyes, dozens of them, peered at him from deep within the foliage around him.

Suddenly, a small, long-eared creature thumped out from behind a tree and hopped right up to the trembling doctor.

"The Werebunny!" Master whispered, staring down at the evil-looking rabbit. Before he could form another coherent thought, another bunny hopped out to join the Werebunny. This "normal" bunny gazed at the Werebunny adoringly, her eyes sparkling with what could only be bunny passion.

The Werebunny tore his gaze away from Girlbunny, threw back his head, and let loose an eerie, guttural noise. A signal. From out of the foliage burst dozens of miniature bunnies, all of whom obviously took after their Werebunny daddy.

"Oh, dear!" Master screamed, turning to run for his life. "The Werebunnies have multiplied!"

The end?

Obviously not cause there would have been something after that.but then again, you never know