How Could She Love Me?
Chapter 1: The Rude Bus Driver
The Chameleon was in an evil slump. He couldn't think of the right crime to commit
today. He had just stolen all the worms from a bait shop and Agents Puppy and Katswell were
already in pursuit. Stealing worms didn't seem very evil, he knew that, but he was hungry.
He decided to ditch the agents by turning into TV's Wolf Spitzer and getting on the bus.
The driver was an irritated moose wearing a stained black T-shirt and sweatpants. The Chameleon
held out three dollars and the driver snatched them so hard that he feared losing his hand.
"Take a seat," growled the driver. There was only one empty seat.
The Chameleon had it all planned. He would take the worms, ride home, and come up
with his next scheme, one more evil than all the others. He was ready for anything. . .
"Wait!" One more passenger pushed open the doors. She seemed exhausted. She was a
slender eighteen year old fox with wearing a short pink dress and slippers. She had a dark red bob
of hair, glasses with black frames, and big greenish-blue eyes. She also looked vaguely familiar to
the Chameleon.
She held out her money to the rude driver. He treated her the same way he treated the
Chameleon. The driver eyed her curiously. "Do I know you from somewhere?" he demanded.
"I don't think so. It doesn't matter. I really need to get to the pharmacy! It's urgent!"
"Just sit down," groaned the driver. The fox went to the only available seat next to the
Chameleon. She stared at his eyes, as if looking for something in them.
The Chameleon yelled at the driver, "You don't have to be so rude to that girl!"
"Don't preach to me, Spitzer! Your show is terrible!" The Chameleon scowled as the fox
sat down next to him. Her ears twitched.
She leaned over and whispered to him. "I know who you are."
"What? I-I'm Wolf Spitzer, of course! Uh, newsrooms, reporters, PBC-6."
"No, you're the Chameleon." His eyes became wider than normal. "Don't worry, I promise
I won't tell anyone." She extended her hand to him. "I'm Maria Foxxy. My family moved in next
door to you."
"Oh, I thought you looked familiar. Um, who was that guy giving me the evil eye this
morning?"
"That was my dad, Malcolm Foxxy. He's a little bit scary sometimes. He's also super-
protective of me."
"I think I remember now. He's that rich lawyer, right?"
"Yes." Maria looked at him. "I'm pretty tired from ballet class. I'm going to take a nap. Wake me up when we get to the pharmacy." Her eyes closed and she slumped over. The Chameleon watched her sleep. In a way he was jealous. She seemed to have a peace in her life that he lacked. He remembered who her father was. Very scary, and very rich. The Chameleon also recalled that Malcolm Foxxy had a pretty wife, Margarita, and a son, Mario. He watched Maria sleep until. . .
"Hey, you passed the pharmacy!" said the Chameleon.
"Thank you for the tip, Sacagawea!"
"How dare you! First you pass Maria's stop, and now you call me a woman! You're crazy!"
"Now see here: on my bus I have a first paid, first stop policy!"
"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." The Chameleon started to shake Maria's shoulder. "Wake up, Maria. This jerk drove right past the pharmacy."
"That can't be!" cried Maria. "I need to pick up a refill for my inhaler! What if I have an attack?"
"A what?"
"You see, I'm an asthmatic. If I don't have my medicine, an attack could possibly. . ." She paused, worried.
"Could possibly what?"
"Could possibly. . . kill me."
"I don't believe this."
"Believe it, newsboy!" said the driver. "No sick girl will make me turn around, no matter how rich her daddy is." Maria's teeth clenched and a growl started to build in her throat.
And then things became even worse. Another passenger spilled a cup of cola on "Wolf Spitzer," who yelled "Hey!" and turned back into the Chameleon.
The passengers all gasped. "The Chameleon's on the bus!"
"What?" said the bus driver. "Not on my bus!" He pulled over and kicked the Chameleon off the bus.
The Chameleon groaned, sprawled in the street. "I can make it home. I can turn into a helicopter or a taxi or something." As a matter of fact, he wasn't sure why he didn't do that in the first place.
"Well, I can't do that."
He was shocked. "Maria?"
It was her, looking even more distressed than before. "They kicked me off the bus too. They thought I was your accomplice." She sighed. "I'm alone in a strange city with no clue where the pharmacy is." She looked at him. "Could you take me there?"
The Chameleon wasn't sure. He had stolen nightcrawlers and evil plans to attend to. "Couldn't you call one of your friends to give you a ride?"
"I can't do that because that would require having some friends." She sighed again. "I'm a bit of a loner, and people tend to avoid me anyway because of my dad. Especially boys."
The Chameleon thought it over. "All right, Maria. I'll show you the way." He couldn't believe it. A loner just like him! "I think it's back this way."
Maria beamed. "Thanks. I'm so glad you're here." She took his hand. They paused, looking into each other's eyes before they started walking.
They hadn't taken ten steps when they heard Agent Puppy yell, "Freeze, Chameleon!"
The Chameleon saw the T.U.F.F. Agents coming. "Seriously?"
Maria looked at them. "Did you give me bad directions or something?"