CRAZY SLUMBER PARTY
Chapter One
"Cannonball!"
Cream and Cosmo were working in Cream's garden, watering her flowers and raking her leaves, when Marine came by.
"Crikey, mates," Marine said, "that would be some pile of leaves to jump into!"
"We're not supposed to be playing," Cream said as Marine took the rake from her and started raking the leaves into a big pile. "Momma wants us to clean the yard."
"You sheilas work too much," Marine said. "and you're too serious. Don't you ever get bored with yourselves?"
"Are we boring?" Cream asked Cosmo.
"I've never been bored around you," Cosmo said. "Have you been bored around me?"
"No," Cream said.
"There, good enough!" Marine said. She dropped the rake, ran across the yard, then ran back at the pile of leaves. "Cannonball!" She jumped in, scattering leaves around everywhere.
"Momma's going to be mad," Cream said, getting the rake and raking the leaves up again. "Please don't jump in them again, Marine."
"When we're finished we should water the rest of the yard," Cosmo said.
"I'll do it!" Marine said. She grabbed the hose and started spraying everywhere.
"Hey!" Cream yelled as the raccoon sprayed her. "You're getting my dress all wet!"
"Don't worry, mate, it'll dry," Marine said, spraying Cosmo next.
Cosmo was a plant so she liked being sprayed by the hose. "It feels like it's raining! I love rain!" Cosmo said.
"Marine!" Cream yelled. "You're getting the leaves all wet and we haven't picked them up yet! Cosmo! Stop dancing and help me!"
"Oh, sorry, Cream," Cosmo said.
"You sure are getting to be an old lady, Cream," Marine said as the three girls picked up the leaves. "You used to be cool."
By the time they'd picked up the wet leaves, they were all a mess. Marine turned the hose on Cream and Cosmo again to clean them off. Then she turned it on herself.
"Brrr," the raccoon said. "Why didn't you two tell me the water was so cold?"
"You didn't ask," Cosmo said.
"Just look at you three!" Vanilla said, coming outside. "Turn off that hose and go take a regular bath like ladies instead of wild animals."
"I'm not an animal," Cosmo said.
In the bathroom, the three girls put their soggy clothes in the clothes hamper. Cosmo turned on the water to fill the tub.
Marine dipped a toe in the water. "It's too cold, Cosmo," she said. So Cosmo turned off the cold water and turned on the hot.
Cream stepped into the tub. "Cosmo, it's getting too hot," she said. So Cosmo turned off the hot water and turned on the cold.
Marine climbed in. "It's too cold again," she complained. So Cosmo turned off the cold water and turned on the hot again.
"That's enough water," Cream said. "The tub's too full now."
"I'll take care of that, mates," Marine said, getting out of the tub. She hopped onto the sink.
"Marine, no!" Cream yelled.
"Look out!" Cosmo cried.
"Cannonball!" Marine yelled. She jumped off the sink and landed in the tub. Ker-Sploosh! Water flew all over the walls and the floor. "There," she said, "now it's not too full."
Cream looked around. "Oh no!" she cried. "My momma will be furious! We have to clean up this mess!" She got out of the tub.
Cosmo got out too. The two girls got towels and started cleaning up the water.
"I'll refill the tub while you two sheilas work," Marine said, turning the water back on. "Now it's too cold…"
"Don't you start that again!" Cream said, scrubbing the wall.
"Yes, please, Marine," Cosmo said, scrubbing the floor. "I'm getting tired."
"Crikey, Cosmo," Marine said, "you've sure got a big butt you have."
Cosmo blushed. "Don't make fun of me," she said.
"It's not nice to make fun of people's butts," Cream said. "Why don't you help us?"
"I am helping," Marine insisted. "I'm refilling the tub. Who wants to jump in next?"
"Nobody's jumping in next," Cream told her.
"I don't want to have to clean the floor again," Cosmo said.
Finally the bathroom was dry enough for Cream and Cosmo to get back in the tub. They were both really tired now.
"Marine, the water's freezing!" Cream said.
"I'll turn the hot water on," Marine said.
"Please get away from the faucets," Cosmo moaned.
"From now on I run the water in the tub," Cream said.
When they got out of the tub they realized they had another problem.
"The towels we were going to use to dry off with are all soaking wet now," Cosmo said.
"That's okay," Marine said. "It's still light out. The sun will dry us in no time." And she ran out the bathroom door and through the kitchen into the backyard. In a minute the other girls heard, "Crikey, I've got mud on me feet, I have!"
Cream and Cosmo looked at each other and groaned.
"I don't know about you," Cream said as they went to sit in Cream's window and dry off in the sun, "but I don't really care anymore if Marine's clean or dirty."
"I don't care anymore if I'm clean or dirty," Cosmo said.
"Marine!" came Vanilla's voice. "Get in here and put some clothes on, young lady!"
"Lady?" Marine said, looking around. "Where? I don't see no lady. Oh, hiya, Cosmo!"
"Get in here or you won't be sitting down for long time!" Vanilla yelled. "And you two! Don't sit in the window with nothing on! Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do with you girls."
"It's not too late," Cream said to Cosmo, "but maybe we should put our pajamas on now."
So the two girls put on their pajamas. Cream's pjs were orange and Cosmo's were green. Marine came in. "Guess what?" she said, putting on her pjs. They were blue. "Your momma invited me to spend the night! Pillow fight!"
She grabbed the pillow off Cream's bed and started hitting the other girls with it.
Cream and Cosmo fell on Cream's bed. They looked at each other and groaned. This was going to be a long long day and a long long night!