Courage the cowardly Dog

[A weird news report about people being found in their homes as pale as writing paper, and frozen stiff in paralysis. Courage is concerned. And the next day a stranger comes to Eustace and Muriel's house covered in scarfs, wrappings, and trenchcoat asking for refuge from the unforgiving sun. The sun is shining mildly, the wind is blowing strongly, it's a wonderful day in the middle of nowhere,.. So what is this stranger complaining about? Courage doesn't know… but there is something fishy about this stranger arriving in nowhere, it's up to courage to see exactly what that fishy thing is]

It was a normal night in Nowhere, nowhere ville in the Baggs House. The TV was blaring in the living room displaying some show about two men that were throwing cream pies at each other for some silly reason or another. *Whoopaa!!!* "Oh is that how your going to treat me Samuel, well then i think you should try this flavor" *Whoopaa!!*. Another creampie found its mark. "Why Joe, that's the same flavor!!!" The audience laughed hysterically at their cream filled antics, but not as hard as Eustice laughed. "Ooo Hahaha Ouuuhahaha"

"Did you see that Muriel, he just creamed with a pie, haha and it was the same flavor!!! Heheheh"

Muriel who was rocking in her rocking chair petting courage the cowardly dog, the hero of all the stories of nowhere, and a very pleased pup at the moment.

"So silly" she said chidingly shaking her head. "where do they get all of their pies from Eustace? They have so many to throw at each other."

"From the pie maker of course" Eustace replied snidely. "every good show has a pie maker."

Just then the TV volume turned up to maximum volume as a part of a special broadcast from nowhere news. The Nowhere newsman came on screen with hard waxed orange hair, tired eyes, and his usual coffee stained grin. "We interrupt this paid programming to give you an important announcement." he said exuberant as ever, There is a cloaked killer wandering around somewhere in nowhere!!!"

The whole house gasped in surprise.

"just earlier today, a couple was found in their homes, paralyzed stiff and pale as snow. But the most unusual thing of all, was that all the victims were afflicted with terribly large ears! Like an elephants!!!" the announcer put his hands out besides his head in immigration of an elephant. "here are some clips of some of the victims that have been found since then.". What followed after was almost too ghastly to describe but if there were any description to be said, then it would be about the incredibly enlarged ears of the nowhere victims. They had swelled to the size of small watermelons with ear holes the size of peach pits.

"Ouuughhh" Eustace yelled in disgust. Muriel covered her mouth with a startled gasp "Oh my" She whispered. Courage, who was watching the broadcast intently got a clean direct look at the pictures, and was spared no modesty in its grotesque appearances*. The little purple dogs stomach immediately ejected both his doggie lunch and dinner out onto the floor. This only inspired more yells from Eustace, and oh my's from muriel.(/Luckily courage was quick enough to aim the previously eaten meals into a doggie bag that he kept on him at all times, for safety reasons).

The screen flashed back to the Nowhere News man, "And here with us, is Dr.Vandu to explain what this terrible affliction that affects these people is. Dr.Vandu?"

Dr.Vandu, a bushy browed thick mustached man with an even thicker accent was put on screen. "There is nothing i can do!" He said.

The camera slid back over to the Newsman, who looked unphased by the doctors condemning conclusion. "There you have it folks! This is a deadly stranger with some sort of deadly disease. We will work to keep you educated and informed, But In the meantime, officials recommend that you be careful and report any suspicious activity that you see to the authorities immediately."

And with that Eustace impatiently changed the channel. "Aghh, bah! That News Reporter will do anything to interrupt a show, wastin my time!" he grouched with a scowl on his face.

The Next Day was one of the most beautiful days the middle of nowhere had ever seen. There weren't many clouds in the sky but the wind was blowing strong, and the sun was shining mildly down. It was so great of weather in fact, that Muriel, Eustace, and Courage were all outside actively enjoying the weather. Eustace was working on his truck, which had just been checked by him the previous day, but he considered it a good idea to double check his work. Muriel busied herself with courage in the vegetable garden on the side of the house, watering, weeding and pruning the plants, a chore that courage always found to be enjoyable. Even though he was a dog he had a wide doggie smile on his face as watered the tomatoes on the edge of the house. Muriel hummed one of her self made melodies and the farms windmill squeaked steadily in the lively afternoon breeze.

Courage enjoyed days like these. Days when the entire house was involved in doing something productive. Any day that Muriel was happy was a good day to courage and Muriel was never brighter than whenever she worked in her garden. As for Eustace, him working on his truck or any other task of utility meant that he had no time to play cruel jokes on courage, slap him with fuzzy pink slippers, or yell "stupid dog" at the top of his lungs.

It was a time of softly drifting peace and tranquility on the nowheresville farm. And as Dog of simplicity, courage was enjoying it thoroughly.

Courage finished pruning one of the last tomato vines on the wreath, before standing upright, and wiping the sweat from his brow. He blew a sigh and looked happily out to the dusty plains of nowhere. A tumbleweed blew by lazily a couple dozen feet from the house, bouncing gracefully across the dry ground. Courage lazily watched it skip along, before it crossed something very dark, very thin and very tall. Courage followed the figure from the base of its shadowy figure to the very top, and was met by a pair of brightly gleaming eyes. Courage was transfixed in an awful mixture purplexed confusion and cold doggie fear, he wasn't sure what exactly he was looking at. The tall dark thing stood there in the breeze like the statue of a shadow, gazing back at courage venomously.

Quickly like the shutters of some awful camera lens the pair of eyes blinked rapidly

"AHHHHHHHHHHGGG" He screamed, jumping up 3 feet into the air, and landing in Muriel's arms, who was walking by.

"What is it courage? She asked looking out to see what had startled the poor pup. Her eyes fell onto the same tall thin dark figure standing in their front yard. "Oouu. It looks like we have a visitor! Eustace! look alive, there's someone here to see us."

Eustace who was halfway submerged in his beloved trucks engine, lifted up just enough to see what she was talking about.

"Ehhh? Visitor, we didn't have no visitor coming today. It's just one of those advertisers from the cable company. We don't want any!" He roared, and then returned to his inspection.

The stranger seemed not to take any notice to Eustace and approached the farm anyways. Slowly, and in a weird waltzing manner, he came towards Muriel taking one long sweeping stride before pausing and taking another. Courage shook in Muriel's arms as he watched the stranger approach. It was like watching a creepy fog silently dance itself across the ground towards you in a horror movie. Even in broad daylight, courage felt like this person was very bad news.