Chapter 7: Pop or Boom

"How long is this damn road anyway?! Why did you have to take 'The Sunny Side of the Street' Street?!"

After they had all piled into Labcoat's car (which was surprisingly normal), they have zoomed off toward the energy signal.

Unfortunately, Labcoat had passed through the said street that puts all cars in pace with the slow, mellow music of the singing trees and dancing flowers.

Silence settled inside as they sat through the beat, their panicked minds tuning in with the slow rhythm.

Jesse turned to Mina.

"I hope your counterpart isn't hitting on Rhoda."

"What?" she asked incredulously, she jerked her thumb at Roger, "Do you even see me hitting on that? No offense, though," she said quickly, turning to Roger.

Rabbit ears waved off her concern, "None taken."

Mina leaned towards Roger with a staged whisper, "He has always been the jealous type."

"I am not the jealous type," Jesse said calmly but nonetheless, with a frown, "Rhoda is super-friendly-"

_Across the Alternate_

Rhoda swivelled her head at Herman's car window, "Wow! I think those are Kit E. and Goody's boy versions!"

Herman looked at the window to see Wile E. Coyote and Goofy walking on the sidewalk. He yelped when Rhoda suddenly clambered on top of his legs to squeeze her upper half out of the window.

"Hi guys!" she waved at them enthusiastically.

Pissed, Herman glared up to berate her to stop maiming his legs. But then he stopped.

Where are all those sparkles coming from?

_Across the Alternate_

"-unconsciously cute," Jesse continued.

_Across the Alternate_

"As you can see," Wile said to Goofy, "the human law of physics state that force is equal to mass times acceleration. But as a toon, we can intensify that acceleration to create a force that the audience, which are the humans, would be surprised of and therefore be amused with."

"Gawrsh, Wile! That stuff behind what we can do sounds great. But I just let it happen."

"Hi guys!"

Wile and Goofy looked at the strange rabbit girl with stunned confusion as she gave them a window-washer wave.

"A-hyuk!" Goofy exclaimed, giving her a dreamy wave of his own.

Wile continued to walk while staring.

"Goofy, why is there a more than adequately attractive girl waving –Aaugh!"

He cried out in pain followed by the sound of a "Goofy holler".

_Across the Alternate_

"-Has no concept of personal space-"

Mina rolled her eyes, "I got rib fractures to prove that."

_Across the Alternate_

Rhoda flinched when she saw Wile hit a lamppost and Goofy fell into a manhole.

"Wow, I never thought they're clumsy in this reality," she said.

"Get off me!" Herman yelled as he wriggled out from under her. He huffily sat in the center, leaving the window side for Rhoda.

_Across the Alternate_

"-And her fluffy cottontail brings attention to her rear."

Mina rolled her eyes. "Yer imagining things. I bet rabbit rears ain't that attractive."

_Across the Alternate_

Rhoda looked out of the window with her trunk still leaning out of the car, her cottontail swishing curiously.

Herman slapped both hands on his face and slowly dragged them down. This had to be karma biting him in the ass for all those times he'd been less nice to women.

"Will you sit down?!" he yelled, refusing to look at Rhoda's side –or precisely her…

"Okay, okay!" Rhoda got back inside the car, "Jinkies, Baby Herman! Don't yell too much, you're red already," her blue eyes filled with concern, "Are you okay?"

Jessica put a hand on her mouth to stop herself from laughing.

"Can you tell me more about Roger?" Rhoda asked, trying to stir Herman's funny mood swings.

_Across the Alternate_

Mina rolled her eyes and gave Roger a wiseguy look, "Jealous type, in short."

The rabbit stared at them, digesting what Jesse said. He put his yellow-gloved hands on his chest.

"Even I'm not that oblivious!"

_Across the Alternate_

"He's as BLIND AS A ROCK," Herman said, spelling out his point, "Once; there was this gold-digger who thought he'd be an easy picking."

Then he started to snicker, "It hurt to keep a straight face the whole time she was trying to seduce him. Roger thought she's just a very friendly girl."

Herman snorted with laughter, "She got so mad, she slapped him across the face before storming out!" he gasped, holding his stomach as a fit of laughter overcomes him.

"How friendly did she get?" Jessica asked in a casual manner that would have made smart people back away.

Herman snorted, "Then what, Jessica? Yer goin' to ask for her name and address?"

"Herman…" Rhoda said in a placating tone.

_Across the Alternate_

"Sometimes I got the feeling Herman doesn't approve of my friendship with Jessica at first," Roger said thoughtfully, "He never said it out loud but he used to act like I'm Little Red Riding Hood and Jessica's the Big Bad Wolf."

Mina and Jesse looked at each other at the same time –one a look of suspicion while the other shrewdly.

"Oh, I'm sure Herman's got every right to be suspicious," Mina said, "Some people spell trouble after all."

"But those suspicions are not at all accurate in the end," Jesse spoke in an almost snooty manner.

"Don't worry; I never saw you and Rhoda that way," Mina said, casually checking her fingernails, "Although I always wondered why Little Miss Sunshine befriended Mr. Ice-Prince-with-a-Popsicle-up-in-his-"

"Mina!" Roger interrupted.

They all lurched forward as they turned to another street devoid of the mellow music.

"Finally! I never thought we'd get to the-"

They turned around the corner to face miles and miles of traffic that could be seen from the windshield.

Mina let out a string of curses.

"Jesse! Take the wheel!" Pop said, climbing out of the passenger seat.

"It's my car!" Labcoat protested.

"And Jesse's the best driver that can swerve around this mess," Pop replied, taking out an umbrella that would not have fitted inside his coat jacket.

"Hey, where you going?" Roger asked.

Pop looked at them mysteriously, "I'll catch up with you," he said, before he tosses the detector to Roger.

Roger climbed into the passenger seat as Labcoat begrudgingly exchanged seats with Jesse.

Mina rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of the past conversation, "Let me assure you, Jesse. There is no way I'm going to hit on Rhoda as a guy."

Jesse started the car, "You're a couger, Mina. What are the odds your counterpart is a saint?"

_Across the Alternate_

"Holy-" Herman yelled as Jessica defied the human laws of physics by swerving the car around the traffic with lightning speed.

"Wow! You sure can drive!" Rhoda exclaimed, holding on the dashboard.

"Of course," Jessica said, cutting sharply around the corner, "My honey bunny's never good behind the wheel."

Rhoda chuckled as everything around them becomes a blur, "Better lover than a driver, huh?"

Jessica gave Rhoda the smile of a cat that ate the canary and got the cream.

The rabbit blushed at her expression.

"Oh."

She was still smiling at her when she dodged an incoming eight-wheeler without so much of a glance to the windshield.

_Across the Alternate_

Poppy landed gently on top of the cloud and she closed her umbrella. She looked down and she could see Badlands, a toon desert, stretching as far as the eye can see.

She faced the winds, letting it flap her dress. The energy was here, alright. Usually, she would let the winds take her wherever she was needed. But tonight, it was a special case.

You can never control the Old Winds. But they'll listen if you'll ask please.

_Across the Alternate_

"It's a dead end!"

"No, it's not! We'll have to get across that alley to get to the Badlands!"

Jessica looked up. The sky was dark with clouds that seemed to be rushing into the said dessert.

They all get out of the car and Rhoda hopped out, bounding up and down.

"Guys, I'll go on ahead!"

"Uhm, Rhoda," Jessica said, "Maybe, you shouldn't jump so high, you're wearing a skirt."

"Oh don't worry," Rhoda replied, she lifted up her skirt to reveal a pair of black tap shorts, "I'm wearing shorties!" she exclaimed, before bouncing off.

Jessica blinked, "You got to admit, she's got nice legs," she said, turning to Herman.

Herman slapped a hand over his eyes –hard.

"I'm going to need therapy after this."

"EEEeeeekkkk!"

"Rhoda!"

They all rushed into the dark alley.

A blur ran toward them and Rhoda appeared behind Jessica's legs, shaking. Soon, a menacing group of shadows approach them. A burly cat-like toon emerged from the darkness.

"Well, well. What do we have here?"

_Across the Alternate_

"Look what got into our turf, ladies," a tall, Amazonian wild cat sneered.

Mina pushed her way to the front, "Look, lady. We don't have time for-"

The wild cat takes out a pistol, silencing Mina.

"A baby, an ugly nerd, a cock-eyed rabbit and oh- hello," the ringleader said flirtatiously as her eyes landed on Jesse.

Jesse narrowed her eyes at her. Mina was right, they were losing time with every second they were dealing with them. He looked around at the others, who were equally or less menacing than the leader –their eyes glowing in the dim lights.

The wildcat suddenly pointed her gun at Roger whose eyes were lock on it, "Stop that teeth-chattering, knock-kneeing rattling or I'll shoot ya, you rabbit!"

Roger, even in a fit of fear, could not resist, "Okay, but you're so tall, you'll have to point directly to the ground and I'm so short, I'll have to put a target on top of my head! Then I'll run around in circles around ya while you try to shoot it just to be fair!"

Silence ensued. The ringleader suddenly burst out laughing, followed by the rest of the gang.

Roger grinned, "Or I can run around in stilts just for ya! What do you say?"

_Across the Alternate_

The burly wild cat eyes both Rhoda and Jessica, "A sweetie and a sexy. A cutie and a hottie."

Rhoda cowered behind Jessica, shrinking back when he stepped closer.

"P-p-please sir! We really need to get through!" Rhoda said, her ears drooping. Jessica glared at him defiantly.

"I'm going to ask you to step aside," she said coldly.

"Or what?" the ringleader asked. The rest of the gang hooted with laughter, their eyes glowing as he suddenly reached for Jessica-

POW!

They all blinked. The rabbit hanged in midair for a moment, one leg outstretched and sunk deeply into the face of the gang leader.

The ground quaked when his entire 6-foot mass fell down flat. Rhoda landed on top of him and stood up, glaring at him.

"Don't you dare mess with my girl friend who could have been my girlfriend if I were the boy!" she yelled, defiantly swinging an arm away.

The gang fell silent in confusion.

Herman rolled his eyes, "Oh no, that doesn't sound weird at all."

Then he realized something, "Wait, you know how to fight?" Roger didn't know how to fight. Herman had even saw him get beaten up by a punching bag.

Jessica looked at him as though he should have known something so common.

"Humans think it's funny when toon girls can kick butt, Herman," she said, while taking out a frying pan out of her purse.

Rhoda held up her fists in a Bunny Boxer stance and stamped one foot forward, her gloves suddenly were suddenly laced-up and cushioned for boxing.

"You can scare me all you want but don't mess with my friends!"

_Across the Alternate_

"-and I said, 'Man, whoever's the rabbit that owned that foot, isn't so lucky!'"

A ring of laughter echoed inside the alley. Jesse looked around. The girl gang was now relaxed and in a good mood. He never liked it, but charming ladies did have its advantages. Plus, now was the time swaying them had the fullest effect.

"Ladies," he said smoothly, "We'd love to stay and chat but we are in a hurry. So if we could be excuse…" he gave them a disarming smile that literally made them drop their weapons.

The ringleader looked back at her gang, "Well, we do have places to go. We'll let you slide- for now," she purred with a bat of her eyelashes, "Let's roll, girls!"

The pack of wildcats walked past them after picking up their weapons again. Roger, Jesse, Mina and Labcoat looked at each other before sighing in relief. They all moved forward to the Badlands.

Mina deflated with a sigh of relief. She suddenly gave an undignified grunt when Roger snatched her.

"Time to go! Now!" he yelled, running after the energy signal.

_Across the Alternate_

"Are you all alright? Did anyone get hurt?" Rhoda asked, her big blue eyes filled with concern.

Herman and the Mad Scientist stared at her speechlessly. Surrounding the rabbit and Jessica were the knocked out bodies of what used to be a menacing pack of hoodlums.

"We got less than fifteen minutes if you still want to live!" Herman snapped "How far do we still have to go?"

The scientist checked the detector, "Less than a hundred metres," he said calmly, as though matters of life and death were everyday occurrences.

Rhoda scooped up Herman and put him on her shoulders, "This is how Mina and I usually travel," she explained before she bounded off, the others following in tow.

XOXOXOXOXOXOOXOX

The winds howled as they found themselves in the middle of the desert. Heavy clouds shifted with an unseen wind that soon brought flashes of lightning. Although the weather report stated there's no storm, they're not surprised if thunder would soon follow after.

Rabbit ears flapped rapidly with the wind as Rhoda shielded her eyes from the sifting sand.

"Here! Wear this!" the Mad Scientist yelled, giving her his invention.

"What's that?" Jessica asked, putting her hands over her legs against the wind flying her dress.

"It's what will take her home!" the scientist answered back, hooking the machine around her chest like putting on a backpack backwards.

"Guys!"

They all turned to see Poppy casually walking towards them.

"Poppy!" Rhoda exclaimed, "Where you've been?"

Poppy smiled mysteriously, "Buying some time," she said cryptically. Old Winds were rare and ancient, they could almost do the impossible –like hold energy, "You got precisely three minutes to say goodbye."

Jessica suddenly scooped Rhoda up into a tight hug. She gently rubbed her face against fur that seems so familiar.

"I'm going to miss you but I already miss my honey bunny so much."

Rhoda grinned, wrapping her arms around her in return, "Ditto," she said, pecking her in the cheek.

Jessica gently put Rhoda down, "Hold on a sec," she said.

She took of the rabbit's polka-dot bow tie and tied it jauntily on the base of Rhoda's right ear.

"Just a new look to remember me by."

Rhoda knelt down to face Herman.

Herman looked at her. Rhoda was cute, sweet and funny but there are too many buts; primarily Roger being the one big butt, to even think in that direction.

Rhoda giggled when Herman ruffled her ginger hair.

"Stay good, kid," he said.

She suddenly scooped him up into a hug and twirled a bit before putting him down. Herman shook his head at her antics but suddenly stiffened in surprise when Rhoda gave him a peck on the top of his head.

"Bye, Herman."

_Across the Alternate_

"It would be impolite not to say goodbye before you leave," Pop said.

Labcoat fits Roger her gadget and he turned to look at them one last time.

"I guess this is it," Jesse said, holding up a fist.

Roger high fives it with an open palm, "It's been swell."

He suddenly scooped up Mina who yelped in surprise, "I can't wait to tell ya all back home!"

Mina gave him a good natured punch in the chest that Roger was sure will come out as a bruise the next morning.

"Take care, son."

He put Mina down on the ground and looked at the machine on his chest.

"Go on! We're right on the energy signal!" Mina yelled, ignoring the stinging sand.

Roger pushed the button. Nothing happened. He pushesdthe button again and again and again.

"It's not working!"

_Across the Alternate_

"It's should be working! I invented it!"

"Guys!"

They all turn to see Poppy who pointed up the sky.

"The energy is up there," she said.

They all stared up in the sky.

"How high?" the scientist inquired.

"About a hundred feet, give or take a few!"

"How are we supposed to get her up there?" Jessica asked.

Rhoda turned to Herman, "Herman-"

_Across the Alternate_

"-are you also a Discus throwing athlete?" Roger asked Mina.

Mina nodded in understanding and grabbed Roger by the arm. Roger let his body relax as Mina spun him around above her head until he became a blur.

"Twenty seconds!" Pop yelled.

Mina began to spin around her feet –around and around and around, spinning faster and faster.

"Fifteen! Hurry up!"

Mina's brows creased with concentration as she leaned her whole weight against the inertia.

"… Thirteen!.. Twelve!... Eleven!"

Mina let him fly into the stratosphere where Pop had pointed.

_Across the Alternate_

"…two…" Poppy does not finish counting as she waited what will happen next.

Rhoda became a dot… and then nothing.

The Mad Scientist's jaw dropped in dismay, "It can't be, there must be an explosion"

The winds died down and the clouds were swept away, leaving them in absolute silence in the starry sky.

Herman's fists clenched, unbelievably praying to a God he had always ignored.

Jessica put her hands on her mouth, feeling her throat constrict. It can't be…

When she had heard of the Cancellation Effect, she had only became strong for Rhoda. If a miracle doesn't happen right now, she's going to-

BOOM!

"Roger!"

_Across the Alternate_

"Rhoda!"

A tiny dot could be seen in the sky and they all ran after it. The tiny dot soon became bigger and bigger and they could see Rhoda using her skirt as a floater while her rabbit ears whirred around like a helicopter.

Jesse caught her around the waist and Rhoda embraced him into a hug. He hugged her back, thanking every higher power who let her come home safe. He freezed when he heard her murmur something before his face splits into the happiest smile that people thought he wasn't capable of.

"I love you too, Rhoda," he whispered back.

"Oh gross! Would you put her down already?!"

Rhoda and Jesse separated a bit to see Mina looking at them in a bratty manner with one foot tapping impatiently.

Mina yelped when Rhoda suddenly slipped out of Jesse's arms and embraced her into a bone-crushing hug.

"I miss you too, Mina!"

Jesse lifted her up by her waist again as soon as she placed the cussing Mina down, "That's a nice look you got in there," he said, indicating her ribbon on top of her head.

"Thanks!" Rhoda exclaimed, nuzzling his nose with her own, "Jessica put it in there."

_Across the Alternate_

Something fell down the sky, screaming.

"Roger!" Herman yelled, running into the spot where he was going to fall. He stopped, thinking of the logic of his actions as Roger's shadow became bigger and bigger.

Oh, shi-

CRASH!

Roger groggily rose up from the rabbit-shaped hole before placing an equally stunned Herman into the ground.

"Where am I?" Roger asked in confusion.

"Home, you doofus," Herman replied, shaking off the debris.

Roger's eyes clears and he smiled happily at Herman from the hole. He spread his arms wide for a hug, "Baby Herman! I'm so glad to –OW!"

The rabbit got interrupted when Herman punched him in the nose.

"You crazy rabbit! How many times did I tell ya NOT to touch props?! Especially the Mad Scientist's! You could have been wearing a sissy toga and playing the damn harp right now! Heck, do you have any idea how-"

"We met the coolest girl from another universe," Jessica said.

She scooped Roger up from the hole by his cheeks, "Honey bunny…." she cooed.

"Love cups," Roger answered back mushily, hugging her around the waist, "I missed you so –mmph!"

Herman rolled his eyes and walked back to Poppy and the scientist to give them some privacy as Roger's feet reactively pedalled the air. It seemed like Jessica misses him too.

Poppy gave the Mad Scientist a hard look, "You're still going to pursue inter-dimensional travel even if I say it's too risky even for my kind, aren't you?"

"Yes," the scientist said smugly.

"Nothing I'm going to say is going to stop you, right?"

The scientist nodded, "That's right," he folded his arms on his chest as he smirked up at her, "What are you going to do about it?"

WHAM!

Herman blinked in shock as the scientist fell to the ground with Poppy holding Jessica's frying pan.

"I don't give a shiznit about this loony but what…"

"It's just to give him some amnesia to delay him from his mad schemes," Poppy said casually, swinging the pan, "Hey Jessica! You can have it back now!"

Roger and Jessica walked back to them, holding hands.

"-you should have met Jesse and Mina, Jessica! They're great!"

"Really? What do I have in common with this Jesse?"

"Well, he has your sense of humour…" he said, looking meaningfully at Jessica. Jessica chuckled.

"Has mad driving skills and he even has your eyes," he stopped, "Jeepers! What can you tell me about this Rhoda?" he asked, turning to Herman.

Herman forced himself to look at Roger. Then he stared at him –really stared at him.

"Herman?"

Herman silently walked toward Roger until he was in front of the rabbit.

"Gyaaahh!" Roger yelled in surprise as Herman leaped at him and clutched his red straps. Then Herman looked way, way down inside his overalls.

"Herman!" a very indignant and red Roger yelled, crossing his arms in front of his trousers. But Herman already had leaped back to the ground.

"You could have asked first!" the rabbit exclaimed.

"Just checking," Herman said before walking off to the direction of the city, "Glad to have you and your package back, boy Roger."

Jessica chuckled at Roger's reaction.

He turned to Jessica, "Jeepers! What's with him?"

DING-DONG!

The man opened the door to reveal Roger in civilian clothes.

He looked at the rabbit in confusion, "What the hell are you supposed to be?"

Roger grinned at him under thick curly hair, "Trick-or-treat!" he said, holding up his pumpkin basket.

The man rolled his eyes, "Nice hair, by the wa-

"BOO!"

Roger's "hair" rose from his head to reveal Herman.

The man gave a very "manly" scream that can be heard across the neighbourhood.

Roger ran off with Herman on top of his head, both hooting with laughter. The man chucked candy bars at them.

"You crazy toons!" he yelled, before slamming the door close.

Herman wheezed, adjusting his wig costume, "It's always the big ones that lose it."

Roger checked his basket, "We got less candy than last year but," he grinned up at Herman, "This is the best Halloween so far! Jeepers, I can't wait for Christmas! Remember when we went carolling?"

Herman cringed at the memory, "Uhm, Roger, about that…"

THE END.

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