THE STORY LINE 139

'Kirby chewed on this information and on his carrot for a moment. Feelings of determination and new-found strength pulsed through his spine, plus a new appreciation of the comeliness of Naomi and the other girl bunnies.

"What are you doing the day after Easter?" he asked Naomi.

"Stay focused," she warned.

OSCAR PREDICTIONS

Oh, excuse me, hold on, we have a special guest appearance from a celebrity puppet who has inside-the-can information on who will win Oscars tonight. Please go ahead, Mister Oscar:

"Sure, OK, for best garbage, the winner will be "Black Swan!"

You're kidding, right? A lot of people loved that movie. And Natalie Portman, look at the great job she did, don't trash her performance.

"Do not talk to me about trash, she is not trash, but she can never compare to the incomparable Miss Piggy in Swine Lake. Now, scram!"

THE STORY LINE 138

' "I feel like I need a carrot first, if that's OK?"

"Then a carrot you shall have," said Naomi, and provided one. "It will protect you against Bunny Kryptonite, too," she said.

THE STORY LINE 137

' "What do you feel like?" asked his eagerly awaiting Eggs.

THE STORY LINE 136

' "Indeed, yes, it does," Naomi affirmed. "And your hindquarters are more powerful than a locomotive."

"That's what they feel like!" Kirby exclaimed. "I can do this! I feel like--I feel like---"

THE STORY LINE 135

' "The Egg has turned you into SuperBunny," said Naomi.

Kirby flexed his new long limbs. "Does this mean I can leap tall baskets in a simple bound?"

THE STORY LINE 134

' Then Kirby's ears were deafened for a moment by what seemed to be the sound of a giant egg cracking. "Hey! What's up with this?" he asked.

THE STORY LINE 133

' "Your ears are growing," said the Flute Egg.

"I can hear you perfectly well without YOU shouting either," Kirby wailed.

"No one is shouting, it's your ears," said the Flute Egg.

"I can't hear you when you talk so loud," said Kirby.

"Deaf if you do, deaf if you don't," muttered the Flute.

"Hey, my paws!" Kirby cried. "My paws are getting bigger!"

"It's all right," said Naomi. "It's the magic egg working."

THE STORY LINE 132

' "I'm not shouting--really I'm not!" said the Accordion Player Egg.

"Maybe it's me," Kirby said. "I don't feel like myself."

"You don't look like yourself, either," said the Flute Egg.

"What's different?" Kirby asked.

THE STORY LINE 131

' The Accordion Player Egg tapped nervously at his keys.
"Do you have to drum so loud on those?" Kirby cried.
"I'm not drumming, I'm barely touching them," he replied, softly.
"Now, why are you shouting at me?" Kirby accused. "there is no need to shout!"

THE STORY LINE 130

' "What's the matter?" asked the Band of Eggs.

"I feel as if my head will explode!" said Kirby. "It's like--it's like--" he tried to find something to compare it to, which is hard when your head is splitting.

"It's like my head is an egg that is cracking itself!"

"Dog's gone crazy," muttered one Roadie to another. "Did you give him any bad kibble?"

"I'm not crazy!" said Kirby, whose hearing had suddenly become much more acute. "Something is happening to me!"

THE STORY LINE 129

' Just as he said that, Kirby felt something akin to a jolt of lightening through his head. "Ow," he said. He rubbed his muzzle. It felt worse.