"Hey, Daria! Where are you guys going?"
Daria stopped as she was about to get into the driver's seat of he father's blue Lexus, and looked toward the sidewalk. "Books by the Ton. Why?"
Quinn and her friend Stacy turned in at the Morgendorffers' driveway. "Can we get a ride with you? Stacy wants to look for tops at Junior Five."
Daria cocked her head slightly. "Where's the rest of the Fearsome Foursome?"
Quinn did a little "if you must know" head toss/hair flounce. "Sandi sometimes has a problem with Stacy's color choices. It just works out better if we shop for certain things without her. So will you give us a lift?"
"I'd say 'sure' if it weren't for the rounding you up later part."
"It'll take us half an hour at the most, and we'll meet you at the book store. If we don't, just leave. We can always get a ride."
"Well, on that basis… okay. Go let Dad know you're going with us."
-scene break—scene break—scene break-
Later, the four girls were heading out of Lawndale Mall, each carrying a bag except Jane. "Did you want to go anywhere, Jane?" Daria asked.
"Well, I'd like to hit the Art Barn."
"Okay. That's right by the Read Book used book store. I can wait for you there."
"Hey, could you drop us by Sweet Petites on your way?" asked Stacy.
"I guess. We're having lunch at the Sedalia Trail steakhouse first, though. It's right across the parking lot."
"Megabar, here I come!" crowed Jane, rubbing her hands together.
The two fashionistas traded a series of looks and shrugs, then Quinn said, "Sounds good. They have a good salad bar." They exited the mall—and Stacy stopped in her tracks just outside.
Jane and Daria, coming behind, had to stop likewise to keep from piling into them. Clutching their Cashman's shopping bags, Quinn and Stacy were looking down at a dead cat in the mall parking lot. It was apparently a recent accident---no flies, no smell.
"What do you suppose that poor kitty was doing here?" wondered Stacy.
"Who knows? Maybe it wanted to check out the food court." Quinn replied. "Come on, lets…"
But Stacy had already grabbed her shopping bag and was explaining, "I'll just put my things in your bag, and then I'll take this tissue…" She dumped her purchases into Quinn's bag and then used the tissue paper to pick up and lower the former feline into her own Cashman's bag and cover it.
"STA-ceee! What in the world…"
Stacy gave Quinn a piteous look. "Please, Quinn, don't say my name like that! You sound just like Sandi!"
"I'm sorry, Stacy, but what in the world do you want with a dead cat?"
"Just to give it a decent burial. Someone loved this cat, Quinn. It deserves at least that."
Daria and Jane looked on, bemused. This was the first sign of individuality and initiative they'd seen from Stacy. Quinn turned to her sister with a what-should-I-do-now expression. Daria, puzzled herself, merely shrugged.
It was but a short walk to the car, and they stashed their loot in the trunk. But Daria held up a hand to Stacy. "Sorry, but I don't think Dad is ready to trade in his new-car smell for a dead-cat smell. The inside of that trunk will get pretty hot in this sun."
"But what can I do? I don't think it's a good idea to take it in the restaurant."
"You got that right." Daria thought of telling Stacy what sensible people would do with a dead cat in a shopping bag—if by some strange circumstance they found themselves in possession of one—but realized it would be a waste of breath. "Just leave the bag on top of the trunk. We can sit by a window so you can keep an eye on it."
Stacy looked at Quinn, who shrugged. "I don't know what else we can do, Stacy. You're the one who wants to hold a kitty wake."
Daria made a little noise like a smothered snicker, but said nothing.
-scene break—scene break—scene break-
The girls filled plates and sat down at a window table, where they had a view of Jake's Lexus with the Cashman's bag still on the trunk. But not for long. A large, obese black-haired woman in a flowered dress strolled by the car, looked quickly this way and that, and snatched the Cashman's bag without breaking stride. She quickly waddled out of their line of vision. The four exchanged wide-eyed looks of amazement. It had happened so fast that none of them could think how to respond.