A/N: Thanks for reviews etc. You guys are more awesome then you'll ever know. On to Chapter 9!


Like ants crowding around a fallen piece of candy, the Board of Shaman were crowded around a glowing crystal ball deep in the woods. They had been working for hours trying to track down the lost potion and had finally hit a breakthrough after Dennis suggested that he take over.

"Hold me higher Saboo! I can't see a thing!" Tony wiggled against the dark shamans grasp.

"How about I drop you altogether if you don't shut that annoying pink mouth of yours." Despite his insult, Saboo held Tony up above Kirk's head.

Dennis was waving his hands above the glass ball and chanting in a jibberish language. His white eyes watched the ball intently. "Oh I see.. Yes that's it.." He nodded.

"Will you get on with it Dennis?" Saboo said impatiently.

Dennis chuckled.

"What you got? Find the potion yet?" Tony's tentacles wiggled.

"Gather closer. I don't think we have to worry about this anymore." He stepped back away from the ball so the gathered shaman could step in closer.

"You have got to be kidding me." Saboo shook his head. "How did that manage to get a hold of the potion! Naboo is a complete and total idiot. Tell me again Dennis, why is it that we ever trust him with anything?"

Inside the crystal ball was a small image of Old Gregg, dancing around his underwater cave with a water color of Howard. His pink tutu and seaweed hair flared out as he spun around and around singing to a tune playing in his head.

Tony laughed louder then the other rest of the snickering shaman. "Takin' it back will be a snap won't it, what's the plan then?"

"The plan is take it back whenever we feel like taking action." Dennis crossed his arms. "The threat level of this sad sad little creature is low. I doubt it will be coming up with any particularly evil or brilliant plans. For now, rest easy knowing the potion is as safe as it could be under the circumstances."

Saboo snorted setting Tony back onto the table. "We might as well of just given the potion to the this green thing to begin with. Save ourselves the trouble of hunting it down."

The Board of Shaman let out a collective sigh of relief as they sank back into their chairs. They could relax knowing the potion wasn't in the hands of a murderous villain and they could easily take it back, whenever they got around to it.


Molly woke with a start. She'd had the strangest dream about crack foxes and eels. She ran a hand through the tangle of hair on top of her head and looked around, fully expecting to see her hotel room. What she saw instead was an unfamiliar flat and she began to panic, until she remembered she'd spent the night on Howard and Vince's couch after it had gotten much to late to walk to the hotel. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Sun was peeking in through the windows, but no one seemed to be up yet. She sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest and examining the bracelet on her wrist. It hade been the present Vince had given her the night before. He had told her it was a friendship bracelet, one that you could add charms too. This, he had said, made it a million times better.

"Morning." Howard's voice made her jump and turn. He had appeared in the kitchen, and was filling a tea pot with water.

"Morning." She ran her hands through her hair a second time.

"Nice hair. Not quite as bad a Vince's though." He joked. "How did the couch treat you?"

She smiled. "Not bad. I feel like I need a shower though."

Howard nodded. "I'll take you back to your hotel as soon as I get this tea going."

"What about Vince?" She stood and stretched. "Won't he wonder where you went?"

"Maybe. Usually he's not up until late and he's a bit cranky in the morning."

"Whose cranky?" Vince grumbled from the hallway as he shuffled into the kitchen in a pair of fuzzy slippers. His hair was a complete mess, with shining black fringe sticking out every which way. "Who were you talkin' too Howard. Your really losin' it you know." He sank into a chair at the table.

"Good morning." Molly said with a laugh.

Vince looked over his shoulder at her with sleepy eyes. "Oh yeah.. Forgot you were here Molly." He rested his forehead on the table. " 'oward I'm hungry."

The mustached man sighed. "Are you hungry too Molly?"

She tried to say no but her empty stomach made her nod her head.

"How about cereal then." He went into several cupboards and drawers, setting up the table for breakfast.

Molly made her way to the seat beside Vince and he tilted his head to the side to look at her. "Your hair looks crazy." She said.

He narrowed his blue eyes and grinned. "Whatever. Notlike it's much better then your's."

Together, Vince, Molly, and Howard sat at the table munching on breakfast. She was still curious about all the adventures they'd been on and they seemed more then happy to tell her. Most of the stories ended in Vince giggling and Howard shaking his head im embarassment.

"I would like to take a shower I think." Molly said as she finished up her final soggy pieces of cereal. "I'll come back when I'm done and you can do my hair again if you want." She added the part about her hair and Vince smiled, tapping his spoon on the side of his bowl.

"Ill walk you back if your interested." Howard sipped on his tea and she nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks Howard." She stood and made her way to the stairs.

"Be right back then Vince. And do something about that fern on your head while I'm gone." The spoon Vince had been holding flew through the air and hit Howard in the back of the head. "Ow."

They made their way out onto the street and he began to lead her back to her hotel, rubbing the back of his head and grumbling.

"Vince told me to ask you about Old Gregg." Molly stuck her hands in her pockets. "It was the only story he wouldn't tell me."

Howard cleared his throat. "Yes well.. That's a bit of a gray area.."

"He said you'd say something like that." She smiled over at him.

He let out a breath. "Right, of course he did. Well, Gregg was an interesting guy. Sort of a deep sea transsexual if you will. Vince and I met him after a terrible gig. We went to a small fishing town to clear our minds and I ended up getting kidnapped by him after fishing on his lake."

She stifled a laugh then coughed. "Sorry keep going."

"I ended up being kidnapped and taken down to his underwater home. Gregg fell in love with me, apparently. He showed me his water color portfolio and told me how much he liked Bailey's. He wanted to marry me and that's about all there is to the story. Vince, Naboo, and Bollo saved me before anything happened. We haven't heard from the guy since."

"That's pretty embarrassing Howard." She smiled.

He nodded. "That's probably why Vince wanted me to tell the story."

She laughed as they stopped at the hotel. "Thanks for walking me. See you in an hour or so."

"Right. Bye Molly." He took a few steps backwards "I'll have to introduce you to some jazz today."

She smiled then made her way to her hotel room. She slipped in the door and dropped her camera on the bed. She'd never felt more welcome anywhere and was beyond grateful for her new friends. The sooner she could get back to the Nabootique the better.

Only after she turned away from the bed did she realize that all her things were on the floor. The drawers of the small dresser that the TV sat on were flipped and all her clothes were pulled out. Her backpack was flipped inside out and all the paper and keepsakes she'd collected over time were in a small pile on the floor.

Molly panicked and turned back to the door. She would stop Howard before he got to far away and get him to search the room for her. However, before she took two steps towards the door, a pair of cold hands covered her mouth and muffled a scream.

"I'm not here to hurt ya so don't scream again." A relatively non-threatening voice said into her ear. "Just got a few questions for ya girlie."

Molly tried to relax as the hands uncovered her mouth and turned her around until she faced her captor. "Who are you?" She whispered as she looked over what she could only assume was a man standing in front of her.

The creature grinned. "I'm Old Gregg!"