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andrewmoocow · 8 months ago

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Rick and Haruko chapter 2: Be Excellent to Each Other (originally published on March 14, 2024)

AN: Welcome back to Rick and Haruko, everyone! Sorry to keep you waiting, I had school stuff to do, plus I spent the weekend at Anime Milwaukee and had an utter blast taking pictures of cosplayers while also spending more than $600 on merchandise, like new games for my Nintendo Switch. I finally got my hands on games such as Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, Astral Chain, and Triangle Strategy, which I've been told is supposed to be really fun. But enough about my personal life, let's get on with what you've all been waiting for already. Starting with this chapter, we start adventuring into more crossovers with fandoms I've yet to write for, so consider this a potential backdoor pilot for possible future stories. Okay? Okay. Now, on with the show!

---

For Haruko's first big concert as a member of Rick's band, the Flesh Curtains, she was taken to the Net. Through systems, peoples, and cities, to this place: Mainframe. What she found so amazing was that not only were there more dimensions beyond the one she lived in, but so many of them were so radically different from her own. In particular, Dimension R-994 was a world that took place entirely within a computer filled with humanoid beings known as Sprites, coexisting alongside little machines called Binomes. After taking the opportunity to play a show for the celebration of scientist Welman Matrix's discovery of systems beyond the city of Mainframe, Rick took the Flesh Curtains to this new dimension on the same cargo ship they rescued Haruko in, which Rick turned into the dimension-traveling Rick-stery Machine.

"So let me get this straight, Mr. Sanchez. Not only are you from somewhere outside of any system entirely," Dot Matrix, a green-skinned female Sprite in garish 80s-style clothing, asked Rick while the guitar-playing scientist tuned his bass in front of a diner under construction, "but you have the power to traverse dimensions?"

"Yeah, I was cracking dimensional travel before your old man made it cool." Rick boasted with a burp. "Wanna hear more about my travels? You would not believe what I've seen!"

"Please tell me more, Mr. Sanchez!" Dot's little brother Enzo demanded while excitedly hopping up and down, with his red and yellow furred dog Frisket barking behind him. "Your adventures sound alphanumeric!"

"Slow down there, young Enzo," Birdperson answered the young Sprite. "As much as we'd love to tell more about our adventures, we still have a concert to perform in the Twin City for your father."

"Hey, speaking of which, where did Haruko and Squanchy go?" Rick wondered while looking around for the band's drummer and their newest member before turning back to the Matrix siblings. "Well, I hate to cut and run you two, but we have some friends of our own to find. See you at the concert!"

As Dot began looking at a clipboard while Enzo continued impatiently running around, Rick and Birdperson walked away in search of their bandmates. "Any idea where those two could've gone?" Rick asked Birdperson. "We're supposed to go live in five minutes!"

"Hopefully, not too far away," Birdperson replied. "Squanchy only said they were going fishing together."

"Fishing, in this universe?" Rick commented while tuning his guitar. "How do the denizens of this place even eat? I mean, what's that diner even for anyways?"

"Excuse me, Mr. Sanchez." a Binome dressed as a construction worker said to Rick, catching the well-traveled scientist's attention. "My friends and I would like to hear some of your music before your big show today."

"Okay, fine, how about a little warm-up?" Rick said before preparing to rock out on his bass. "A-ONE, A-TWO, A-ONE, TWO, THREE-" Before he could finish counting down, he heard a loud sound coming from the Twin City. "What the shit?!" A massive explosion soon followed, knocking the two musicians and their audience off their feet. "Birdperson, what the hell just happened?!"

"Something must've happened in the Twin City." Birdperson analyzed, his composure never shaking despite the sudden noise. He then turned to watch Dot and Enzo hop aboard a car and race to the Twin City. "We can find Haruko later. I suggest we investigate the damages."

"Fine, whatever." Rick grumbled as he and Birdperson raced towards the Rick-stery Machine and flew off after the Matrix siblings.

---

To Rick's surprise, the Twin City he and Birdperson arrived in was now a desolate wasteland filled with Binomes trying to find any survivors of the explosions. "Damn, so many lives lost. And it wasn't my fault this time!"

"You're still thinking about how you fed Galactus that one planet while unaware it was still populated?" Birdperson asked as he brought the ship in for a landing. "We should find Miss Matrix and comfort her in her and Enzo's time of need. Surely, you'd know how they feel."

"You bet," Rick replied glumly, thinking back to his late wife and daughter as he disembarked from the Rick-stery Machine to comfort Dot and Enzo. "Hey, Dot, was it? I know I'm usually not the kind of guy to give emotional support, but I'm sorry about what happened to your old man, and I've actually been in your shoes before."

"How so, Rick?" a despairing Dot asked Rick while holding her little brother close to her.

"You may not know this, but I once had a little daughter around Enzo's age," Rick explained while pulling out a sentimental photo of him giving a piggyback ride to a young blonde girl. "She was heartlessly taken away from me, too, and now I'm hunting down the rat bastard who did it. I gotta warn you guys: do not try going for revenge against whoever did this. It'll only make your life suck worse than it already does right now."

"Rick! RICK!" Rick heard Squanchy call for him while pulling up to the destroyed Twin City on a yellow Vespa scooter. Sitting behind Squanchy on the seat was Haruko, only now she had her hair styled and was wearing a red dress and black high-heels. "We were squanching for you guys all over Mainframe when that big explosion happened!"

"Where the hell have you two been?!" Rick yelled at Squanchy and Haruko. "And what's with the dress, Haruko? You going on a date?"

"Several, actually, just being a little heartbreaker," Haruko said while batting her eyelashes. "You should've seen the last one I was gonna go on before we went to you guys."

---

"Al? Al! I think I've been stood up!" the waiter Binome at Al's Diner yelled to his boss upon realizing Haruko wouldn't show up to their date.

"WHAT?!" Al yelled from afar, causing the waiter to sigh in loneliness.

---

"And now I think we gotta get outta here," Haruko said before one of the emergency relief Binomes noticed Haruko and started getting angry.

"Hey, where were you?! You stood me up!" the Binome yelled before another Binome recognized the last Wasprian.

"Wait, you asked her out, too?" the other Binome asked, just as multiple Binomes started crowding around Haruko, confused and angry.

"Do I even need to ask?" Dot asked Rick while a Sprite with silver hair and blue skin appeared out of a portal behind her.

"Uh, look, someone who can help!" Rick yelled, pointing at the Sprite before running away. "Everybody to the Rick-stery Machine!"

"Get him!" one of the Binomes yelled, chasing the Flesh Curtains to their ship before Birdperson took control and flew it away from the Twin City.

"Damn, Haruko, how many of those Binomes did you seduce?" Rick asked his Wasprian protege while the two caught their breath aboard the ship.

"About a dozen or so." Haruko grinned like a cat as she undid her hair. "So many of those little guys thought they were hot shit, but I gave them all the slip."

"Attagirl!" Rick laughed triumphantly before the two exchanged a fist bump. "Hey, Birdperson, check it out! Haruko here conned a bunch of those dumbasses!"

"A dozen, you say?" Birdperson replied, eyes focused on leaving Dimension R-994. "That does not seem healthy."

"Hey, cut me some slack, BP! You've seen dimensions where people go out with more than that!" Haruko responded. "Though personally, I do not want to know how those Binome guys reproduce."

"Well, I guess we should head to our next show soon," Rick said as he turned to Squanchy. "Squanchy, where to?"

"Ooh, you're gonna love this squanch!" Squanchy said while pulling up the band's next destination on a screen.

---

Meanwhile, back in Mainframe, Repre S. Entative watched angrily as the Flesh Curtains flew away, standing atop a building with a few Medical Machines by his side. "Dammit!" he complained while stomping his foot. "I was so close this time, and they got away again!"

"It seems our timing was off, sir." a masked Medical Mechanica soldier observed. "They were planning to hold a concert in that other city, but then the explosion happened, and the Wasprian tried to catfish the locals."

"Doesn't matter; we have another mission to accomplish." Repre said as he regained his confidence. "We need to plant an iron and a Pin in this dimension where no one can find it. That way, these folks will all be taken by surprise when it activates!"

"Speaking of surprises, the master would like to see you." another soldier revealed, shaking the Representative Director's bravado and making him quiver in fear. "I don't think he will like your failure here."

"Just install the Pin and get on with it already," Repre replied nervously before opening a portal that took him out of Mainframe, leaving his enforcers to be confronted by a large, robotic figure with a dark blue body, red fins on his head, and glowing green eyes.

"Uh, can we help you, sir?" another one of Repre's soldiers asked, and the figure responded by extending yellow claws from his hand with an evil smile on his face.

---

"No, Davros, I am not altering my Medical Machines' designs to your specifications!" an aging humanoid man draped in a cloak and wearing a mask argued with a screen showing an even older man with his eyes permanently shut, a glowing blue dot on his forehead, a mechanical right hand, and a metal brace attached to his head. "No one in their right mind would ever be intimidated by a bunch of xenophobic trash cans with the most obnoxious voices ever conceived by any being!"

"You laugh at my Daleks now, but you shall soon see how terrifying they can be!" Davros cackled maniacally. "Soon, they shall bring about THE DESTRUCTION OF REALITY ITSEL-" The man ended his conversation with Davros before the deranged scientist could finish.

"That's what I hate the most about conquerors like him." the Lord Superior Officer Demido Kuriya, leader of Medical Mechanica, said while taking off his iron mask, revealing his thinning white hair, blue eyes, and that his face had a large mechanical implant installed which covered his right eye. "They cannot see beyond basic megalomania and instead prefer to cause havoc and commit genocide rather than stepping back to see the bigger picture."

"Lord Superior Officer, your summons have been answered." a Medical Machine declared in a feminine secretary's voice while stepping into Demido's office, bringing a smile to the CEO's haggard face.

"Ah yes, send him in." the LSO replied as Repre was shunted into his office. "How goes your mission, my son?"

"Terribly, Milord." Repre sighed in anger before he punched a wall. I keep getting so close to capturing Sanchez and the Wasprian, but they always leave me at the last possible moment!"

"Rick is a far more calculating opponent than you might think, as is expected among the Ricks of the vast multiverse," Demido stated while putting a fatherly hand on his second-in-command's shoulder. If you were to take a good long look at the two, you'd swear they were father and son, and you'd be right because Repre is actually a clone of Demido Kuriya, created to serve as his right-hand man. "However, I am more concerned about that Haruko Haruhara character he's been traveling with lately. She's come into contact with the Pirate King, and no doubt this connection will prove detrimental to our plans."

"That is true." Repre agreed with his boss and progenitor. "Do you wish for me to capture her, sir?"

"Correct, my dear boy," Demido answered with ominous politeness. "Although all of Wasprus has been destroyed, perhaps we can still find a use for its people. I would also like Atomsk in our clutches as well."

"Precisely what I was thinking!" the Representative Director exclaimed. "You know how much I crave his power! There is no multiversal singularity and symbol of freedom from restraint that I want to control more than the Pirate King, and hearing that he destroyed Wasprus only makes me lust for him more!"

"Hm, I see." the Lord Superior Officer nodded before walking his clone towards a painting of an army of demons descending from the sky to battle a group of angels on the ground. "Allow me to show you this painting I have recently acquired. The art collector I met with calls this piece "Demons from the Sky," symbolizing how light shall soon falter in its great battle against darkness. Given my origins, I can't help but connect to this artwork.

"What do you mean, sir?" Repre asked.

"I'm saying that you shouldn't get too cocky, my child." the Lord Superior Officer stated curtly while looking around as if he had a secret to hide. "I may have created you to be the ideal version of myself, but Rick Sanchez is a dangerous opponent who has made many powerful enemies and allies across the multiverse. He is always a couple dozen steps ahead of the curve, and there is no doubt that Wasprus girl will learn from him and become as capable a manipulator as he."

Just then, an orange-colored Medical Machine in a business suit entered Demido's office to speak with his boss. "Mr. Kuriya, your board of executives would like to speak with you." Executive Director Yamaguchi said to the Lord Superior Officer. "They want your thoughts on acquiring a potential new asset to the company."

"Can this wait, Yamaguchi?" the Lord Superior Officer said to his direct liaison to the rest of Medical Mechanica. "I'm trying to educate my ward here."

"I believe this is of the utmost importance, sir," Yamaguchi responded. They need you to be their Johnny on the spot."

"Very well then," Demido said before turning to his clone. "And as for you, Repre, I need you to install a Pin in Dimension BI-20, where we suspect the Flesh Curtains will perform next. I've already gotten permission from the Galactic Federation to send a few Gromflomites with you, so don't mess this up. Otherwise…." The Lord Superior Officer smashed his fist into the wall to emphasize his point. "Am I clear?"

"Yes, milord," Repre said as he took his leave with his new orders. "Just you wait, Rick and Haruko. I will have you both in my custody soon."

---

For Haruko's first proper gig as a Flesh Curtain, the band was taken to the mystical and demonic world of the Boiling Isles in Dimension BI-20. In particular, they were set to perform on Grom night at the Hexside School of Magic and Demonics, with Haruko serving as the band's frontman while Rick was off cavorting with one of the school's students.

"The coup de grace comes out of nowhere, and it's been ages; I've been waiting." Haruko sang to a crowd of teenage witches while rocking out on a Rickenbacker bestowed upon her by Rick, with Birdperson singing alongside her while Squanchy rocked out on the drums. "Beneath a TV static sky I reside, and I've lost track of fear; no, you can't scare me anymore."

"Looking down on a city so quiet, destroy it on a whim, just tinder and flint now." Birdperson joined Haruko's singing. "Set this whole site ablaze; just stare and watch it; I can't even remember the place's name anyway."

"I'm at peace with accepting this role of solitude I take. You don't need to go easy or look out for me, okay? Oh no, no, no." The two sang a duet together. "Just want to be myself, feeling strength in what I am. No matter who I'm with or where, yeah. Right now, now, now."

The song ended, and the crowd began cheering for an encore, excited to see Haruko perform more. "Thank you all for your support. We really appreciate it." Haruko thanked her magical fans while preparing to walk offstage. "We'll be back shortly for another song, so stay tuned and make sure to use protection! I'll be around the school signing autographs."

"You did squanching great out there for your first time, Haruko!" Squanchy cheered for Haruko while chugging some apple blood as Haruko signed autographs for the young witches. "Heck, if we wanted to, we could totally replace Rick with you."

"Please, you're too kind." Haruko blushed at Squanchy's comment. "Besides, I'm kind of surprised I still went up there, considering the last time I was on stage was when my planet blew up." Just then, she felt someone poke her on the back. "Yes?"

"Hello, Miss Haruko. We want to ask if you know where our friend went." Raine, a mint green-haired witch with brown skin and big glasses, asked while standing next to a fairer-skinned witch who also wore glasses and had curly red hair. "Her name's Edalyn; she's about yay high and has orange hair."

"Sorry, kiddos, no dice." Haruko shrugged, much to the two's dismay. "Last I saw someone like that, she ran off with my buddy Rick."

"Of course, she would." The red-headed witch, Lilith, rolled her eyes and sighed upon hearing what had happened to her little sister. "Well, hopefully, those two make it back in time for Grometheus to be challenged."

"Wait, who's Grometheus?" Haruko asked. "Some kinda mediocre prequel to a classic sci-fi movie?"

"Far from it." Lilith said. "Grometheus is a being who feeds on fear, and we hold Grom every year so that our principal chooses one lucky student to fight it. Whoever does fight Grometheus will have to face the personification of their worst fears."

As Lilith explained the powers of the fear bringer, Haruko became blue in the face as her mind raced, bringing all her worst fears to the forefront. Some of them were rather ridiculous, like her fear of flying spaghetti monsters, but the biggest was losing the people she cared about and being all alone again. "Uh, I gotta go!"

"Haruko, wait!" Birdperson called for Haruko as she ran away from the school dance. "Okay, which one of us should call Rick, Squanchy?"

"You go and squanch him!" Squanchy answered. "I'll go and fetch the kid."

"If I must," Birdperson said before calling Rick. "Sometimes I worry for that girl. She was lost and alone when we found her, but I'm unsure if Rick is the right father figure for her."

---

Outside Hexside, Repre had arrived on the Boiling Isles through a portal of N.O energy with a small squad of Gromflomites, bug-like creatures in service to the Galactic Federation, at his beck and call. "Okay, men, I have strict orders for you all," Repre said to his subordinates. "Your job here is to install a Medical Mechanica factory in this dimension along with a Pin that will allow us to keep track of its progress. And if you ever find a certain scientist and his friends, bring them to me as soon as they're located. Are we clear?"

"YES, SIR!" the Gromflomites yelled obediently while Repre smirked confidently to himself.

"Excellent." Repre sneered before peering inside the gym at a panicking Haruko comforted by Squanchy while Birdperson tried calling Rick. "And wouldn't you know it? They're quite literally standing right behind me." He let out an evil laugh before unveiling a keypad with a screen attached to his robotic arm. "I'm going to enjoy sticking this party up. If only Rick were here to see my victory."

"HAHAHAHAHA! Emperor Ballsack, that's hilarious!" Rick cackled raucously as he and his new friend Edalyn Clawthorne ran away from a statue of the Boiling Isles' ruler, Emperor Belos, they had just defaced. "You have a bright future as a menace to society, kiddo!"

"Yeah, it feels like I'm the only one on these Isles who knows how much of a dirtbag Belos is," Eda replied cheekily. "Why is it that he and his cronies get away with using all forms of magic, but when other witches do it, they're labeled as criminals who need to be stopped? Sounds kind of hypocritical, don't you think?"

"Oh, totally! Almost like Belos is enforcing such strict rules so that his pathetic ass can feel like he has power over something." Rick chuckled before he spotted something in the distance. To his surprise, the scientist could see the silhouette of a large pin being lowered towards the Boiling Isles. "What the hell is going on over there?"

"Wait, I think I know where that thing is going!" Eda exclaimed. "That's going to one of my dad's old places!" She grabbed Rick by the hand and dragged him towards some cliffs away from Bonesborough, where they spotted a large, pin-like object planted on a beach close to an old stone tower. "What's a pin doing here?"

"I think I might have a good idea of where it came from." Rick grimaced as he turned to face a giant iron being installed nearby, signifying that Medical Mechanica was covertly implanting themselves into the Boiling Isles. "Those sons of bitches are here?! We gotta warn the others!" He then pulled out his phone and called Birdperson, who was conveniently waiting for him. "Birdperson, am I glad to see you!"

"What a coincidence! I was trying to reach you all night," Birdperson replied. "We have a bit of a problem here."

"That's exactly why I wanted to call you; I think Medical Mechanica may have followed us here!" Rick exclaimed. "We gotta get outta here, now!"

"Well, funny you should mention that." Birdperson stated flatly. "Because Haruko is currently having a little crisis."

---

"Just calm the squanch down, kiddo; we can get through this." Squanchy tried to comfort Haruko through her panic attack as she curled up into a ball backstage. "You're a strong, brave girl who did so squanching great that first time on stage."

"I know; I'm just scared I'm gonna lose you guys!" Haruko sobbed into her knees as Rick returned via portal gun with Eda by his side. "I already lost everyone who cared about me back home; I don't want the same to happen to you!"

"There you are, kiddo." Rick burped as the portal disappeared behind him before kneeling to Haruko's level. "Dammit, you had me worried sick there for a bit. I can see you're stressed, but we have bigger problems than that right now."

"Like what?" Haruko asked, her tears drying before the Flesh Curtains heard an unfamiliar voice.

"THIS IS A STICK-UP!" Repre S. Entative yelled as he barged into the gym and began pointing a laser gun at everyone around him. "Everyone on your knees! Either tell us where Rick Sanchez and Haruha Raharu are, or someone will get hurt!"

"Excuse me, sir, but I do not believe you've been invited." Hexside's vice principal, Hieronymous Bump, said to the enforcer of Medical Mechanica's will. "Either show some identification, or I will kindly ask you to leave."

"I'd like to speak to your principal about some renegades he's been hiding." Repre said while presenting some wanted posters of each member of the Flesh Curtains. "My superiors have eyes on Rick and Haruha in particular, as they're wanted for one trillion blemflarcks."

"One trillion blemfarcks?!" Haruko exclaimed from behind the curtains, accidentally giving the band's location away before a pair of Gromflomites caught them and brought them before Repre.

"Ah, the last daughter of Wasprus, we meet at last." Repre sinisterly greeted Haruko while straightening his lapels. "You may not know or care about this, but I am Repre S. Entative, representative director of Medical Mechanica, which means you formerly worked for me."

"Repre S. Entative? Man, sorry that your parents gave you such a dumb name." Haruko sneered, infuriating Repre. "Let me guess, you have shitty parents too?"

"My boss is literally the only parent I've ever had, and he has placed a bounty on all your heads!" Repre yelled before presenting the wanted posters again. "If you do not surrender yourselves at once, I will have to use lethal force."

"Well, this has been a real wubba lubba dub dub," Rick said before turning to the Hexside students and teachers. "am I right, ladies, gentlemen, and other assorted genders?" Everyone else began laughing at Rick's joke. "Thank you. I'll be here all week!"

"Enough quips!" Repre yelled before he started typing on the keypad on his arm. "Behold, whelps, the Dreaded Darkness Mecha!" He then let out a maniacal laugh as an orb-like robot with big metallic lips, hyper-detailed teeth, and tentacles emerged from a portal behind him.

"Dreaded Darkness Mecha?" Haruko quipped. "Damn, why not call it the Totally Evil Mechanica 3000, why don't ya?"

"Seize them!" Repre commanded the Mecha as it began haphazardly swinging its tentacles around Hexside's gym, making everyone run for cover or fight back. "That's right, you insolent mice. Scurry while you still can!"

"We have to keep everyone safe!" Birdperson exclaimed while fighting off Gromflomite soldiers and smashing them against the wall. "Everyone, take cover!" The Flesh Curtains then ducked behind a flipped-over table to serve as a hiding place, where it just so happened that Eda, Lilith, and Raine were also hiding from Medical Mechanica. "What are you three doing here? You should escape while you can!"

"But how can I not stick around to see this?!" Eda replied. "This is, like, the second year in a row where grom went down the toilet, and it wasn't my fault!"

"Yes, we still remember what happened with those tree demons last year." Lilith declared before she cast a spell to blast a Gromflomite in the face. "What do we do?!"

"Women are from Mars, and men are from Venus," Haruko stated while preparing to attack with her guitar. "I don't know about you BUT I GOT A GIANT PENIS!" After positioning the Rickenbacker between her legs like a big dick, Haruko fired a missile at the Dreaded Darkness Mecha, causing Repre to finally lay eyes on her once again.

"Ah, the last daughter of Wasprus." Repre declared. "I can see it in your eyes, little one. You, too, seek the power of Atomsk, yes? Well, I'm afraid you're going to have those dreams dashed because I'm going to find him first!"

Haruko tingled at the thought of someone else taking Atomsk's power. Though she had only seen him up close once before, that made her love him against reason, against promise, against peace, against hope, against happiness, against all discouragement that could be. With an angry fire in her eyes, Haruko jumped towards the Mecha with the Rickenbacker in hand and smashed it in the face, causing it to stumble around aimlessly while Rick began to think of a plan.

"Okay, team, while that thing is distracted!" Rick exclaimed as he, Birdperson, Squanchy, Eda, Lilith, and Raine huddled together to discuss Rick's plan. "Okay, we got a giant robot making a mess of things, and the megalomaniac controlling it wants our heads on a wall. Anybody got some bright ideas?"

"I got an idea!" Squanchy suggested. "Why don't we use that Grom thing to show Repre his worst fears, and he'll be so squanching scared, he'll just surrender and squanch away with his tail between his legs?"

"That sounds like a very dangerous idea that could very easily backfire," Lilith advised against Squanchy's plan. "Grometheus is a wild beast whose only form of intelligence is feeding on the fears of whoever comes into contact with it, so there's no way in Titan we can ever get it on our side!"

"Squanch it, kid; I'm a drummer, not an eldritch horror whisperer!" Squanchy argued with the teen witch. "Besides, I don't think Haruko can keep that machine at bay for long." Although Haruko had taken both Repre and his forces by surprise and had the advantage with how unpredictable she was, Repre was renowned for his tenacity and how he attacked like a feral predator.

"Why won't you just stay down?!" Repre snarled as he clashed his lightsaber with Haruko's guitar.

"No man is ever gonna tie me down!" Haruko cackled before giving Repre a long, slow lick across his face to gross him out before she scrambled off to the stage. "Hey kids, wanna see something cool?!"

"What is she doing?!" Raine exclaimed as Rick caught onto what Haruko had planned.

"She's reading my mind!" Rick exclaimed before following Haruko to the stage and wrangling a pedestal with insect legs and a red button. "Care to do the honors?"

"Do you need to ask?" Haruko gave a wry smirk before she pressed the button, causing the gym floor to give way as Repre and his men jumped out of the way, all except for two Gromflomites that accidentally fell into the hidden room.

---

"Help, God, let me out!" Ginememinasaurus Ryan yelled as he banged on the slowly closing floor, trapping him and his partner beneath the gym. "Oh great, what are we going to do now?!

"Hell if I know!" Enyababageil Hugh replied before the two Gromflomites heard a noise in the darkness. Marching ever so closer to the two bug aliens was Grometheus, a strange shadow creature whose form seemed ever-changing, its shape distorting like a blob of ink. Grometheus was drawn towards Ginememinasaurus Ryan and threw out an inky tendril that attached to the Gromflomite's head. He began to tap into his innermost fears while another tentacle rifled through his pockets.

Grometheus then changed its shape to resemble a Gromflomite while gazing at what it found in Ryan's pockets. It was a box containing a diamond ring. Gazing at the ring in its hands, Grometheus coldly rolled its eyes before throwing it to the ground and storming off.

"W-What just happened?" Hugh asked while watching his coworker resist the urge to cry as he picked up the box to discover the ring inside. "Oh my, who was this for? You got a girlfriend back home or something?"

"No, I don't have a girlfriend." Ryan replied while taking Hugh's pincers in his. "That ring was meant for you. I love you, Hugh, I always have. I was just too scared to tell you because I thought you weren't interested in me."

"You were just afraid of telling me?" Hugh asked. "Come on, I know you, Ryan. You're the bravest guy I know. It's not like you to hide something like this because you're so scared. After all, I love you too."

Ginememinasaurus Ryan gave Enyababageil Hugh a tearful smile before the two Gromflomites shared their first romantic kiss, and they have Grometheus the Fear Bringer to thank for bringing them together.

---

"Grom's gonna eat those two alive!" Eda declared with a sardonic laugh once Rick and Haruko closed the compartment door on the gym floor before looking at Repre and the Dreaded Darkness Mecha. "Now, what do we do about these two?"

"You think just opening doors can stop me?! Well, it's not!" Repre bragged angrily. I own you! I'll own your planets! I'm going to own this planet!" He then prepared to fire a laser blast from his mechanical arm. "In fact, fu-" Before Repre could finish, Eda and Raine took him out with a magic blast to the back of his head, knocking him out for the count.

"Wow, he went down like a bitch." Rick muttered disdainfully at how the band's self-proclaimed archenemy went down so quickly before pointing at the Dreaded Darkness Mecha. "Now, how do we deal with that abomination?"

"Don't worry, guys, I got this covered." Haruko smirked confidently before racing towards the machine with her guitar ready. "Hey Mecha, what time is it?!" The Mecha glared at Haruko as it readied its tentacles for one final attack. "IT'S LUUUUUNCHTIIIIIME!" With that, Haruko became like a pink blur, darting every which way around the Mecha and causing it to get tangled in its tentacles before she burst through its body like a human missile, destroying the machine once and for all.

"THAT'S MY GIRL, WUBBA LUBBA DUB DUB!" Rick cheered with the young witches as the future Vespa Woman emerged triumphant from the machine's derelict carcass while the Gromflomite soldiers all stared in shock and awe. "SHE GOT THAT FROM ME! ANYONE ELSE WANNA SLAM DANCE WITH HER?!"

"RETREAT!" one of the Gromflomites yelled in terror as all the bug-like aliens grabbed Repre's unconscious body and the Dreaded Darkness Mecha's remains before running away from the Hexside gym. Only then did they realize someone was missing. "Hey, where are Ryan and Hugh?"

"Over here!" Ginememinasaurus Ryan exclaimed as he and Enyababageil Hugh walked toward their comrades while holding hands. "We're engaged now!"

"Yeah. Congratulations on finally tying the knot, you two. Let's get out of here." the lead Gromflomite replied just as Repre finally began waking up. "Hey, the boss is coming to!"

"Ugh, what happened?" Repre muttered as he finally awakened from his earlier concussion. "Last thing I remember was bragging about some doors before getting knocked out by some teenagers."

"Rick's perky female minion took out the machine, sir." One of the Gromflomites revealed this, much to Repre's horror, as the Dreaded Darkness Mecha was wheeled away for repairs.

"MY BABY!" Repre yelled as he tried to get up and screamed in pain from the injuries he sustained. "Do we at least have any good news to take from this?"

"The good news is that we still successfully installed a Pin and a Medical Mechanica factory in this dimension, sir." another Gromflomite stated.

"Excellent!" Repre laughed victoriously, only to start violently coughing from his injuries. "Our time will come soon. But for now, someone put me in intensive care and tell the boss I'll be out sick for a few days or so."

---

"Aw, thank you, thank you so much; I'll be here all week!" Haruko thanked her adoring fans as they continued cheering for her victory over the Dreaded Darkness Mecha. "Please, you're all too kind! Thanks for coming to the epic battle. Goodnight!"

"Encore, encore!" Squanchy hollered excitedly. "You deserve it!"

"Naw, please, I was only passing through." Haruko said nervously, but Rick was ready to make her accomplishments known as he marched up to the last daughter of Wasprus.

"Listen, Haruha Raharu, look me in the eye!" Rick said as he cupped Haruko's cheeks in his hands and tilted her head up to face him. "You've got the makings of greatness in y-y-you, but ya gotta take the helm and chart your own course." he declared encouragingly. "Stick to it, no matter the squalls! And when the time comes, you get the chance to really test the cut of your sails and show what you're made of!" He then let out a dry chuckle. "Well, I hope I'm there, catchin' some of the light comin' off ya that day."

Haruko sniffled with a tear in her eye as she hugged Rick, making him look a little uncomfortable as everyone reacted to the heartfelt sight before them. "Don't you all have jobs?!" Rick asked in embarrassment.

---

As the dust began to settle and Grom proceeded as normal, the band was ready to play another song when they felt a demonic presence looming over them. "I assume you must be the Flesh Curtains playing tonight." Hexside's imposing principal Faust said while ominously twisting his neck, almost like he had no bones. "While I do have to thank you for warding off this so-called Medical Mechanica, I'm afraid you are banned from Hexside premises from here on out, thanks to the chaos you brought with you, starting tonight."

"Aw, come on, it wasn't our fault!" Squanchy complained. "We didn't even know they would squanch up until they stuck everyone up!"

"That does not matter!" Faust boomed. "I don't want to see your faces around the school ever again!"

"Tell him to go eat shit, Haruko." Rick commanded his plucky sidekick.

"Tell him yourself!" Haruko replied.

"Eat shit, asshole!" Rick yelled at Faust in retaliation for being banned. "Fall off your horse!" He then turned to Vice Principal Bump. "Hey, Bumper Sticker, think you can be a pal and let us play one more song for tonight?"

"Oh, of course, Rick!" Bump readily agreed. "I did find myself getting quite attached to your music. Do you perhaps have a copy I can have?"

"Here, knock yourself out, it's on the house." Rick said as he tossed a vinyl record of the Flesh Curtains' songs in Bump's face before he left to make an announcement.

"Honestly, Hieronymous, you're a little too lenient sometimes." Faust shook his head in disbelief while Bump geeked out over his Flesh Curtains memorabilia. "You'll never become principal with that attitude."

"Attention, students of Hexwarts or whatever the hell this school is called," Rick announced to the grom attendants. "Due to some assholes trying to spoil our fun, unfortunately, the Flesh Curtains have no choice but to leave the building because of the little incident earlier. But thankfully, your vice principal has given us the okay to perform one last song before the guards kick us out! ARE YOU READY?!"

"Yeah!" the teen witches all cheered excitedly.

"That's what we love to hear! YEAH BOY!" Haruko replied when she got an idea. "Hey, we'd like to ask some very special friends who helped us save you all tonight to come on up and perform with us!" she offered as the spotlight shone on Eda and Raine. "Eda and Raine, come on up!"

"Wait, us?!" Raine exclaimed as their stage fright kicked in while Eda excitedly grabbed her crush by the hand and dragged them to the stage.

"This is gonna be so awesome!" Eda cheered before turning to Lilith. "Hey Lily, you recording this?!"

"Already on it." Lilith declared as she summoned a scroll to record the concert with.

"Whoo, you go, girl!" Haruko yelled while high-fiving Eda, who was ready and raring to go, unlike Raine, who was quaking in their boots.

"It's okay, Raine. Take deep breaths. You got Eda with you, she'll help you feel okay." Raine muttered to themselves before Haruko noticed their silent panicking.

"What's the matter? You got a crush?" Haruko gave the awkward bard a cheeky grin, causing Raine to blush and glare at Rick's apprentice. "Hey, I'm just asking Geeky McGeekerstein."

"WE ARE THE FLESH CURTAINS!" Squanchy screamed while tapping his drumsticks together. "ONE, TWO, THREE, SQUANCH!"

"When the world has screwed you and crushed you in its fist," Rick began singing as the Flesh Curtains began one last song, this time with Eda and Raine as backup. "When the way you're treated and got you good and pissed!"

"There's been one solution since the world began," Haruko added while shredding some hot licks on the Rickenbacker. "Don't just sit and take it; stick it to the man!"

"Rant and rave and scream and shout; get all of your aggression out!" the duo, along with Birdperson and Eda, started singing together. "They try to stop you; let them know exactly where they all could go! And do it just as loudly as you can! Stick it to the man!"

And so, Haruko learned a valuable lesson about courage and believing in yourself or whatever, but that didn't matter to her. She knew now that someone else was pining for the power of Atomsk, and she refused to let anyone else get to the Pirate King first. It was a good thing Haruko had Rick and company by her side to help her across the multiverse, but in case they wanted Atomsk too, she needed to have them off the board as well. It'll only be a matter of time.

In Loving Memory of Akira Toriyama

April 5, 1955 – March 1, 2024

"Tackle life with as much energy as Goku! I'll try to do the same!"

Ooo-hoo-hoo, ominous! Is Haruko really just leading Rick and pals on, or does she really care for them deep down? We'll just have to wait and see. Also, starting from this chapter, the Flesh Curtains shall start performing songs by The Pillows whenever they do a gig, so be on the lookout for more where that came from. And when next we meet, Repre S. Entative will continue his crusade for Atomsk, while Haruko and Rick deal with being wanted by Medical Mechanica as their road trip across dimensions continues. Catch ya later!

#flcl #rick and morty #crossover #fanfiction #rick and haruko #haruko haruhara #rick sanchez #birdperson #squanchy #repre s. entative #demido kuriya #reboot 1994 #dot matrix #enzo matrix #the owl house #eda clawthorne #lilith clawthorne #raine whispers

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