Heyheyhey!

And...I have nothing to say.

On to the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Alvin and the Chipmunks, nor do I own the chipettes or Dave.

Jeanette shuffled the pages, moved to the second chapter, and began to read.

"I bet it was that Jessica Simpson," Brittany growled. Hours later, she was still on the subject of her lost bracelet. Eleanor and Theodore had given up trying to pay attention to or console her, absorbed instead in Meerkat Manor.

"Britt, I don't think that Jessica took your bracelet," Jeanette said mildly. "I'm sure that it just got lost somewhere. We'll find it tomorrow."

Brittany shook her head firmly. "Not a chance," she insisted. "I distinctly remember wearing it on the bus ride home. When I got home, it was gone. Somebody on the bus stole it. And Jessica is on our bus. Besides, who wouldn't envy this fabulous fashion sense so much that they'd be willing to steal for it?"

Jeanette tried hard to disguise her laughter as coughing, and she did a pretty good job of it. Alvin was just sitting on the armchair, engrossed in her every word.

Brittany huffed again and stomped out of the room to go get her phone and text all her girlfriends about the dilemma. As soon as she was gone, Alvin abruptly lunged across the couch toward Jeanette.

Jeanette scrambled away from him, feeling terrified and astonished.

"Jeanette, I need your help," he gasped.

She blinked. Those were five words she'd never thought would pass through Alvin's lips.

"I think I'm in love with your sister," he said in a throaty voice, swallowing hard.

Jeanette stared at him incredulously. "So…why do you need my help?" she asked him, raising an eyebrow.

"I need you to help me get her to go out with me," he begged her. "You know her better than anyone else! Please, Jean, do this for me!" He collapsed at her feet, sobbing.

"Alvin, you're faking that," she said sternly.

He sat up straight, the tears gone. "Yes, I am. But I can actually cry if you want me to! I'll do anything!" he pleaded.

Jeanette rolled her eyes. "Isn't that a bit melodramatic?"

"You know," Simon spoke up from the chair, "if you really wanted to impress her and win her favor, you could help her get her bracelet back."

Alvin blinked and sat up as though he hadn't thought of that.

"I hadn't thought of that!" he cried, confirming their thoughts. "That's brilliant! Thanks, Si! Thanks, Jean!"

"Glad I could help," Jeanette mumbled, turning her attention back to the television set.

Brittany re-entered the room, typing furiously on her phone.

"Fear not, Brittany!" Alvin announced in a loud voice. "I shall help you get your bracelet back!"

She looked up and grinned at him. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," he confirmed. "I'm going to do it."

She beamed at him. "Alvin, that's wonderful! Thank you so much!"

They stared at one another, and for a second, it seemed as though they were having a moment.

Then a Meerkat on the television screeched loudly, and they both jumped and looked away from each other.

"I…we'll start the investigation tomorrow," Alvin said in a normal tone as though nothing had just happened.

"Good idea," Brittany agreed, hopping up onto the couch next to them. Her face settled into a determined expression. "I'm going to get that bracelet back if it's the last thing I do; it's my favorite one, you know."

Brittany sighed, remembering. "We did have a moment, didn't we?" she said dreamily to Alvin.

He grinned at her. "Does this mean I'm forgiven?"

"Not a chance."

"All right, Simon, it's your turn," Eleanor told him. "I think we're getting into the action parts here."

Simon nodded in confirmation as he held his manuscript out in front of him to see it more clearly. He cleared his throat and began to read.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Alvin sounded awed and doubtful as he stared up at the massive iron gates.

"It certainly is," Simon said wryly, double-checking the address on the card. He was in his normal detective suit with his fedora pulled down low over his eyes.

Alvin, simply in a T-shirt and jeans, let out a low whistle. "Pretty swanky place," he said, impressed.

Simon nodded. "She is a billionaire, after all," he reminded Alvin, ringing the doorbell.

"Wait for me, guys!" they heard from behind them. Turning, they saw a little chipmunk in a police uniform come puffing up to them.

"Glad you could make it, Officer Theodore," Simon told him, shaking his paw firmly.

"Hey, that's me!" Theodore cried. "I'm in the story now!"

"I'm not yet," Eleanor sulked.

"You will be soon," Simon assured her, rustling the pages and continuing to read.

Alvin and Simon had brought Theodore up to date on the facts of the case. Simon rang the doorbell again, and the gates creaked open after a pause.

They walked up the front steps and knocked on the door. It opened, and standing there was a short chipmunk with blond hair, sparkling emerald eyes, and a green maid's uniform on.

"Welcome, Detective Simon, Detective Alvin, Officer Theodore," she said in a low voice, nodding to each of them. Her eyes lingered on Theodore, and he couldn't take his off of her. He was so astonished that he dropped his doughnut.

She giggled a little bit and beckoned them into the house with one hand. "Won't you gentlemen come in?"

"Thank you, ma'am," Simon told her, tipping his fedora and entering the house quickly. Alvin followed, half-dragging the awed Theodore.

"Miss Brittany is right this way," the maid told them, curtsying slightly and ushering them down the hallway. They stepped into a room that had a grand staircase and a glittering crystal chandelier.

Alvin whistled, staring around at all the finery.

"Miss Brittany will be with you in a moment," she told them. She gave Alvin and Theodore a significant look before leaving.

Frowning and confused at this, Simon took a seat on one of the comfy chairs and looked around, examining his surroundings. Alvin and Theodore did the same.

A few short minutes had passed before they heard a door opening and closing and they saw Brittany descending the staircase.

She had her fur up in a bun this time with golden barrettes decorating it. She was wearing a magenta gown with a full skirt and silk gloves the color of gold.

"Miss Miller," Simon greeted her, rising. Theodore and Alvin did, too.

Alvin stepped forward as Brittany elegantly descended. He took her paw and kissed it lightly. "If I may say so, Miss Miller, you look simply ravishing this afternoon," he told her, waggling his eyebrows.

She blushed slightly and threw him a flirtatious smile. "Glad you gentlemen could make it," she purred.

Simon tried not to gag.

She took her seat in a cloud of silk and satin and regarded the men.

"Refreshments?" she asked them calmly.

"Ooh, yes, please!" Theodore said eagerly.

She rolled her eyes but rang a little silver bell on the small table next to her chair. "Refreshments, please," she called, setting it down again.

She smiled at them. "They should be along soon. Now, gentlemen, I assume you've received my invitation to the dinner party."

"Ye—," Simon began to answer when the door to the kitchen opened and a maid came out.

She had messy brown hair that was high up in a ponytail. Her fur was a dark chocolate brown and she was wearing a simple purple skirt and top with an apron over it, carrying a tray with frosted cookies and tea on it. And her eyes…

He was instantly captivated, unable to look away. They were enormous and purple, sparkling like amethyst. Both her long, thick eyelashes and her glasses framed them perfectly.

Simon gawked in astonishment. She was the most beautiful chipette he had ever seen.

She came over and put the tray down on the table. Then she looked up slightly and saw Simon.

Her mouth instantly dropped slightly open as she gazed at him, seeming frozen. A light blush colored her face.

"Thank you, Jeanette," Brittany told her. "That will be all."

Snapping out of it, she nodded and curtsied, hurrying back the way she had come. Simon noted that she tripped three times before finally stumbling through the doors back into the kitchen.

"Ah, Jeanette," Brittany sighed. "My most trusted maid and my best friend. She is a bit clumsy, though." She returned her attention to the situation at hand. "So, I assume that you received my invitation to the dinner party?" she asked, repeating her earlier question.

Simon didn't answer, just sat frozen, staring at the kitchen doors through which Jeanette had just run through.

Brittany frowned. "Simon?"

No response.

"SIMON!" Alvin yelled, and Simon jumped in his chair. He fumbled for a minute before regaining his composure and saying coolly, "Excuse me. Yes, we received it, and we shall be there as planned."

She nodded with satisfaction. "I've come up with a most clever plan, really," she said happily. "I have a false bracelet that looks exactly like the one that was stolen. Everyone knows that it's missing, of course, but I shall present the false one at my dinner party and tell the guests that it is the real one and that the fake one was stolen. Then we can see who tries to steal the fake one, and we can have our thief!"

"Brilliant," Theodore exclaimed.

"You, Miss Miller, are a genius," Alvin complimented her graciously.

Even Simon couldn't help but grudgingly admit that this was a good idea.

"So I expect you to come to the dinner party so that we may catch the criminal," she continued. "White tie occasion, so dress in your best. And for goodness' sakes, Simon, please lose that fedora when you get there or people will know you're a detective before you've said a word."

She smiled at them.

"Will that be all, then?" Alvin asked her, raising an eyebrow and throwing her a flirtatious smirk.

She giggled a little and said, "Yes, that's all. I will see you then."

All three stood up and bowed to her. Theodore grabbed as many of the cookies off the tray as he could before Brittany ascended the staircase again and the green-clad chipette from before re-appeared at their side to escort them out.

Theodore began to stare at her again as she politely said, "This way, please." They walked back down the hall they had come from to the door and exited one by one.

Theodore hesitated next to the servant, trying to force words out. "I-I'm Theodore," he blurted out, not knowing what else to say.

She giggled, though. "I'm Eleanor," she said softly.

They gazed at each other for a moment longer, and then he stepped down out of the house after Alvin and Simon.