MK slipped through the window, which fortunately had been left open. The study was completely silent, and looked exactly as she had left it that morning. She gestured for Ronin and Nod to follow her.
"Whoa," Nod gasped. "What is this place?"
"I don't really know," MK lied. "I've only been here once, and I think I saw some boggan armor somewhere around here."
Ronin did a running leap and landed on the table in the middle of the room and started looking around. On the desk below the sill, there was a jar covered by a cloth. Nod jumped from the window sill, bounced off the jar, and slid down a cord to the floor.
"Come on!" he whispered to a hesitant MK.
Drawing a deep breath, MK ran and jumped. She missed the jar, landing instead on a group of pencils, which rolled and tumbled off the desk. She let out a short scream as she slid under the table and into a pile of dust. Sneezing, she vowed to come and dust every inch of the house as soon as she was big again.
"Don't say a word," she said sternly as she struggled to her feet.
"Careful!" Nod warned as she leaned towards the metal stool nearby.
A huge shock ran through her entire body and sent her flying backwards a few feet, knocking the breath out of her. She saw her reflection in the stool and realized her bangs were standing straight up.
"Nice," Nod said, helping her up. Blue electric light flickered between them. "Ow!" He shook his hand.
"Shut up," she said, shoving him lightly.
"Ow!" He shoved her back.
"Stop it!" MK said, pushing with both hands.
Nod grinned and poked her.
"Will you two quit fooling around and come up here?" Ronin called from above.
Reluctantly, they stopped shoving each other and jumped to the cushion of the stool, and from there to the table. Just then, Professor Bomba lumbered into the room. He walked as slow as the deer, if not slower, and he looked extremely worried.
"Oh," Ronin said. "So this is where that guy lives."
"Man, I love this guy!"
"Who?" MK asked. "I mean, who is he?"
"He's a Stomper," Nod said, staring at him in awe.
"Stomper?"
"Yeah, you know. The big people who come crashing through the forest. Most Stompers come and go, but this guy is crazy! He's obsessed with trying to find Moonhaven."
MK turned and started looking for the boggan armor. She knew it was somewhere, but the room looked so different when she was small.
"Hey, that's my saddle!" Nod said.
"He's found a lot," MK said pointedly. "He's probably spent most of his life collecting this."
"Yeah, but only what we want him to find," Ronin said.
"What do you mean?"
Ronin led her over to the map of the forest laid out on the table. "We've known about him for years. He think's he's close, see?" There was a cluster of pins and tacks clumped together. "We drop hints and clues, just enough to keep him busy and excited over here, when we're really safely tucked away here." He pointed to where Moonhaven was on the map. "He's looking everywhere but where we are."
"That seems cruel," MK said. With every second it was harder for her to keep up the pretense.
"But can you imagine him stomping around Moonhaven with his big feet?" Nod said. "He's dangerous, even if he is slow and stupid."
"Stupid?"
"Have you heard him talk?" Nod asked.
"So…slow…" Ronin said in a slow, deep voice.
"Oh, look at me," Nod joined in mockingly. "I'm big and slow and my feet stink!"
"That's not nice!" MK said.
"Oww," Ronin said.
"I hurt my elbow!" both of them said.
"Shut up, he's my dad!" MK snapped.
Both of them looked at her in surprise.
"You're kidding," Ronin said.
"No, not really," MK said. "My own dad died. And I'm really from the 18th century and was brought forward in time and now I'm trapped here, and he is the only person who has been nice to me. He took me in and cared for me and became like my dad. And then this morning Tara shrunk me and now I'm stuck at this size! I'm a Stomper!"
"You're not kidding," Ronin decided.
"Seriously?" Nod asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.
"It's been a weird day for all of us," Ronin sighed wearily.
"What do you have against Stompers?" MK asked Nod angrily.
Nod lowered his head and spoke quietly. "My uncle was stepped on by a Stomper."
"Oh my goodness, really?" MK said, all her anger gone.
"No, I'm just kidding."
MK shoved him, all the anger returned tenfold, and marched off.
"Too far?" Nod asked.
"Try again," Ronin said. "Maybe she'll shove you harder."
MK ignored them and followed Bomba as he went to the computers. Tears in her eyes, she jumped down and ran to his feet. In the thick silence of the room she could hear him whisper,
"Where…are…you…MK?"
"I'm right here!" MK screamed. "Don't give up, I'm right here! You're so close!"
"Dad…!" Penny's voice cut across the room. Bomba swiveled around to see her. "What…are…you…doing…here?"
"I'm…looking…"
"You're…still…looking…for…those…imaginary…creatures? You're…insane!"
"No…for…MK…She's…gone."
"What…about…me? I'm…sick…I…need…you! I've…been…calling…you! You…care…more…for…her…than…me! You…don't…love…me…at…all!"
"No, Penny!" MK yelled from the floor. "You didn't see him at the fire!"
"No," Bomba promised, holding his hands up almost in surrender. "That's…not…true!"
But Penny didn't listen. She stomped off and Bomba started to follow her. Ozzie and Bolt met Penny at the door, looking at her anxiously. Then Bolt's ears pricked up as he saw MK.
Who's that? he barked. Somehow, MK understood every word he said.
MK! Ozzie said cheerfully.
Intruder! Intruder! Bolt called. He bounded toward her, teeth bared. He was moving slowly, but MK screamed and ran.
No, she's a friend! Ozzie called, following him. But Bolt didn't listen.
Mittens! Wake up! Intruder!
A black and white cat asleep on another chair fell off, startled. She hissed uncertainly, and then scampered out of the way as Bolt nearly knocked her over again. Bomba turned from Penny and started chasing the animals; in the process he caught sight of MK.
"Penny…come…here…I've…found…them! They're…here!"
"MK, up here! Jump!" Nod said.
MK jumped up onto a table, but Mittens followed her, knocking over all manners of bottles and specimens. By this time, Bomba had grabbed a jar attached to a vacuum hose and was also chasing them. Ronin jumped and made it to the windowsill, throwing down the blind cords to Nod. MK grabbed Nod's free hand and they started flying upwards. Ozzie jumped, but because he only had three legs didn't get enough height and missed. His short tongue barely touched them. Bolt was not far behind, though, and he was going for the kill. Bomba's foot came out of nowhere and kicked him aside, and a vacuum hose started pulling them downward.
"Don't let go!" Nod screamed as MK began to slip.
"I can't!" she yelled.
Her hand slipped through his and she fell into the tube. Her body went swirling and bashing against the tube before she finally landed in the glass, dizzy and out of breath. Bomba switched off the tube and reached for his special glasses. A few seconds later, he was staring right at MK. She banged her fists against the jar and looked at him pleadingly.
"MK…?"
The glass went flying up into the air and came down on the table with a crash. Bomba had fainted. Shakily, MK got to her feet and walked over to where his head lay on the map.
"Come on, MK!" Nod called. "Before the other one gets back!"
MK stood for a few seconds, looking at the map. In the center of the cluster of pins, there was a single, only one was red. Carefully, she relocated it to Moonhaven's actual location. She knew it might be dangerous, but what if they needed help with the boggans? And she needed to convince him that he really had seen her in the glass. Then she walked over to his sleeping form and gently kissed him on the forehead.
"I'll come back soon, I promise."
