Who framed us has been's?

Five months later

"Okay time to show you still got it old boy." Mudsy said adjusting his overcoat and reaching for the painted stage door. It was five months since that little outburst at the ink and paint and for him and most of the others there hadn't been doing so hot. Gobber and co still pulled rent by being stage hands for that blue jay and raccoon show, the two never once asking for their autographs as if they would even know who they are, and old Mudsy himself? He'd heard that the only one of his colleagues still working after all this time was doing a new episode of his new show, so called in, and asked if there was any openings for the crew. Yeah when your a toon out of work there really aren't a lot of options on what to do when nobody finds your wacky antics funny and you cant over haul your shtick to the modern times, so most of those like him got by helping out on the new shows, its not the most pleasant thing to do seeing what replaced you right in front of your dot eyes, but its not as depressing as dipping yourself.

The show Mudsy was appearing on was Scooby Doo's new show mystery incorporated, he had received the call some time ago after asking about the stage crew openings, while they didn't have any left, Scooby did mention how he read the seasons script in advance, and at the risk of being reprimanded for it, told Mudsy they'd be open casting for old toons like him to appear in one episode for the first season.

"Don't blow it old boy, this could be your chance to show the world you've still got it." He said smiling with his head held up high. "There even doing it live! just like Mr. H and Mr. B." He said as he reached for the knob of the stage door.

The Marvin Acme Memorial museum. (formerly the Acme warehouse)

"A lot of history here you know," Laura Faustian said to the alabaster unicorn that trotted beside her. They looked from the wax sculptures of various cartoon characters over the years. "Hey look! Lickety Split!" Laura said as Rarity trotted beside a G1 pony with a pink coat and pinkish withe mane. Rarity's big expressive eyes gazed into the wax glassy and small ones of Lickety, she grimaced a bit at her, if only for how jarring it was to be looking into what quintessentially was your great 3X grandmother's eyes.

"I can't believe our predecessors looked like this...I mean I know they were your Childhood, creator. It's just...it's so odd to see how so much has changed since the days of yore. Rarity said in a semi dramaric way, a hoof over her mame holding it back in a bit of mellow drama.

"I'm not going to lie." Laura said as she gazed up at two sculptures of He-man and She-ra. "I'll never forget the great characters that where so close to my heart as a little girl, but as a grown up woman, I see now that even the characters made with...the best intentions, almost all of them were soley done to shamelessly market to us youths. Even the people who's hearts were im the right places in the industry still had a job to do, and that job was to make money."

Rarity may have been relatively young by toon standards, she had been animated at Flash Drive labs only a year ago, but she had as much knowledge about the world as her creator did. "Come now dear, the past is past, and we've moved on from all that." She balanced on her back hooves and patted Laura's back softly. "Remember it for the good amd let the good embrace the future, remember everything you see here for good and bad, is built on the foundations of the past.

It was no coincidence they were clearing the 80s room and entering the Marvin Acme memorial. It was in the large room they stood in where once the props and equipment of the biggest toon stars of the golden age, kept evey trick in the book. Now it was empty of all that as a monument to the tragedy that befell the man who created toontown, Marvin Acme. Killed sixty years ago on this day by Judge Doom aka Baron Von rotten, in a convoluted ploy to turn toontown into a freeway. A bronze plaque to him embedded in black stone, etched with his forever smiling face read: For Marvin Acme, a mad genius of comedy and the best human we toons ever knew R.I.P,

Rarity and Laura looked at his plaque solemnly, he died long before Laura was born, but his toons and their antics rerun even in her child hood, was like the gift of a distant generous uncle she never knew. The same could be said for the other plaques in the room, one was to arguably the greatest, man in animation who ever lived, Uncle Walt Disney himself. His kind, and trustworthy face, like that of a relative that always has a hug and a new toy for you whenever he comes to vist at Christmas or even Thanksgiving. Like a headstone in a cemetery, it listed his life and death. December 5th, 1901-December 15, 1966, and a quote, "Keep moving forward..."

They looked to the next one, the face of a man who had an air of creativity and innovation. It was the memorial to Joe Barbera.March 24, 1911-December 18, 2006. It had been only four years since the world lost him yet it was a less funny one without him. His long time friend and partner William Hanna was beside his memorial.

"I never knew any of them personally Rarity," Laura said gently patting her creation's mane as her eyes began to flood with tears, as if Saddness and her blue aura had seized control of the switchboard to her emotional control. "I only hope I...and everyone who grew up on their hard word, dedication and passion for cartoons, made and will continue to..make...them. she sobbed softly and hugged the soft and warm coat of her pony creation, her girlhood dream made real, and she cried. Only now it was like the bond of Saddness and Joy working together.

"Proud darling?" Rarity said soflty nudhing her maker's head like a pet comforting its owner.

"Yes, wherever they are, I only hope they look at their successors, both me and others like me, with pride for keeping their dreams alive, oh Rarity may...I have a moment alone?" She said turning to the memorial to the old masters again.

"Take as long as you need darling, I understand how you feel, oh and crea....Laura?" Rarity said, at long last feeling equal to the woman who gave her life.

"Yeah?"

"Im sure the old masters are swelling with fatherly pride at you, me, and all the toons living today." Rarity trotted out the side door and Laura was left alone. She didn't see the big hulking frame of the two statues in the 80s room blink, didn't see them get off their platforms and nod at each other in agreement. A big and badly dressed warthog with a dripping snout, and a bad tempered rhino with a steaming nose in a beige tank top and cameo pants. The hog handed the the rhino the pieces one by one to assemble a big, man stopping M60 machine gun.

Although high speed 556 millimeter rounds would have been more painful, their notorious for turning sideways on entry and shattering, ripping muscle tissue and severing blood vessels on impact. The rhino kissed the belt of 7.62 bullets he loaded the gun with, pulled the bolt back into place and smiled to the hog.

"For the boss right?" He said quietly as Laura placed a hand on William Hanna's plaque.

"And for the forgotten." The Warthog said as the rhino took aim, Laura was at a halfway point of medium and point blank range, and the M60 was not a sniper's weapon, but it didn't matter. He pulled the trigger and Laura Faustian barley realized the big bore bullets were tearing holes in her body before the world began to fade.

As the bullets hit her and tore through her flesh, blood spraying and splattering the floor, her clothes and the bronze plaque, her intestines spilled from the openings the hot lead had turned her inside out with. They wriggled and fell into her hands, she choked on her own blood as her punctured lungs filled up with it. The rubber guts in her hands felt like holding sickly wet rubber tubes. She collapsed in a sitting position too choked up by her own blood and the searing pain as the sweet release of death was the much need relief from it all.

"Well Bebop, I'd say our work is done." The rhino said giving the hog a high five.

"Id say so Rocksteady, killed in the memorial hall...aka the same spot old man Acme got kaked in 47, shell casings all over the hall of the failures of our time. This is all according to the boss big plan, hah hah hah!"

"Shut up ya porker!" And put our dummies back on the stands and lests get the hell outa here!" He said slinging the gun over his shoulder. 1987 Bebop and Rocksteady quickly put their wax replicas back on the stands and left the body to be found by the hysyerical janitor to call the police. No eyes but our own witnessed it, not just the killing but something else.

The wax pony Lickety Split seemed to see the tragic end of the girl who admired her all those yeas ago in 1984, and as her cold, stiff eyes stared at the bloody carnage, it was amost as if...a single tear dripped from the beady black eye.