I don't own Lizzie McGuire, or any of it's characters, and am making no
profit from this story monetarily or otherwise. Yada, yada, yada.
The girls rose early the next morning. If they had thought they were sore the day before, it was nothing to what they felt after a night of sleeping on the hard ground. Still, they all had to agree that they were having a great time. It was hard work, but the scenery was so beautiful, and not having phones and tv and all the other noise that came with their usual everyday lives was very relaxing. And paddling the canoes made them sore, but it also felt really good to use their muscles.
Ms. Mac, who regularly practiced yoga, led them in a series of "Sun Salutations," which stretched the whole body. They were amazed at how much better their tired muscles felt when they were done, and at how much energy it gave them. They all broke camp and got ready to move on. Claire actually took down the tent she and Kate shared without complaint, and cleaned their area.
Kate, who could have slacked off, actually helped with the other chores instead. This amazed everyone, except maybe Lizzie. She was dying to tell Miranda about the conversation she and Kate had had on the bus, but felt a strange loyalty to Kate to keep her secret and tell no one. Even Miranda. Lizzie watched Kate pitch in and try to blend in with the group, and thought that maybe, just maybe, the old old Kate ~ the one she they used to share all their secrets with ~ might be coming back.. She shook herself. Probably not. As soon as they got back to school, it would be business as usual, she was sure.
The rest of the day was pretty much like the last one, except that Claire seemed to have learned her lesson. Also, they were a little more acclimated to the long day and hard work, so spent more time around the campfire that night. Ms. Mac told them that they would be staying at that campsite for another day and night, and that tomorrow they would be going on a hike. They would pair off and use the skills they had learned the first day to follow a marked trail. She reminded them of the importance of staying on the path and about the snakes and other creatures they might encounter if they strayed off the path. After that, they talked and told stories and sang and made s'mores before calling it a night.
The next morning, when they woke, they found that Ms. Mac and her TA, Miss Rodriguez had gotten up before them and were already off marking the trails. Kate started some "Sun Salutations," and soon, most of the group was following along with her. They made breakfast, and were ready to eat when the Ms. Mac and Ms. Rodriguez returned.
Ms. Mac told the girls she was very pleased with them and the progress they had made. She was confident that they would enjoy themselves on their hike, and said that they would be given a card with either red or green on it. The ones with the green cards would take the green trail, and the ones with the red cards would take the red trail. They were to follow the trail, using the colored ribbons to guide them. Each pair had a guide book which identified plants and animals indigenous to the area, and they were to mark down at least ten that they saw along the way. The trails were very simple, and she would see them back at camp with lunch ready for them.
At noon, they all met back at camp, famished and ready to eat the next bear that wandered across their path. All, except Kate and Claire. No one worried too much, though, since they were the last to leave. Finally, Claire showed up without Kate.
Ms. Mac asked, "Claire, where is your partner?"
Claire looked confused, "Didn't she come back here?"
"No. You two were to stay together. That's why we go in pairs. Didn't you two stay on the path?" Ms. Mac was trying to stay calm, but her voice was starting to rise.
"Well, I saw a snake. Kate said she didn't think it was poisonous, but I didn't care. I ran. I must have gotten off the path, because I ended up in the middle of a bunch of trees. But I followed the river, and found the green ribbons and followed them here.
"So, Kate is still out there somewhere, probably looking for you?"
Claire hung her head and muttered, "I guess so."
Ms. Mac said, "Go eat! Who's done eating? I need someone to come with me to look for Kate."
Lizzie volunteered, much to Miranda's amazement. "Miranda, I can't imagine Kate out there all by herself. I would be so scared if I were her!"
Miranda decided she would go, too, but Ms. Mac told her to stay. She didn't want anyone else to account for in an emergency situation. She told Ms. R to see to it that everyone stayed put and said that they could keep in touch with the radio. She then asked Claire where she had last seen Kate, and she and Lizzie set off down the trail.
They headed down the trail, calling for Kate, and trying to find some sign of her being there. They had gone about 2 miles and were crossing a stream when two things happened: First, the Ms. Mac slipped on a rock, and there was a loud cracking sound. Her knee began to swell rapidly.
"Oh, my…" Lizzie was about to ask is she was ok, but it seemed like an unbelievably stupid question. "What can I do?"
Ms. Mac was in excruciating pain. "I'm going to need a splint and probably a stretcher to get back to camp. I'll call back to camp and get some help."
Lizzie, with Ms. Mac's help, soaked some bandages with cold water from the stream, and and bound the swelling knee. She searched for some sturdy tree branches, but couldn't find any that would do the job. She did, however, find a neon green water bottle sling.
She ran back to Ms. Mac. "This is Kate's! She's the only one with a sling this color. She has to have been here!"
When help arrived, they bound Ms. Mac's wounded leg to her other one with some bandages, and rigged up a blanket sled to pull her back to camp. Lizzie told them to go on without her, because she had to check out the spot where she had found the bottle.
"Lizzie, you can't stay here by yourself."
"Well, I'm not going to go and leave Kate out here alone. I found her water bottle in the woods. That can't be a good sign."
In the end Miranda, who had arrived with the help crew, was assigned to stay with her best friend. They were told to stay close to the path, and wait till the Ranger arrived to help them out. Ms. Mac handed Lizzie her radio, and made sure she knew how to use it before finally letting the girls take her back to the camp.
When they were gone, Lizzie turned to go back to where she had found the bottle. Miranda followed, and soon found a little keychain Kate always carried, with a heart-shaped frame and a picture of her dog. "Oh, wow, this is not good."
The looked some more, and found a tube of chap stick, and realized that they seemed to be following a sort of trail Kate had made for herself. Miranda thought they shouldn't go any farther until the Ranger got there, but Lizzie said Kate might be hurt and she wasn't going to wait. They finally decided to continue, but they would leave the "trail," intact so they could follow it back themselves. They put the keychain and the chapstick back where they had found it, and moved on.
They hadn't gone too far when they saw a cabin ahead of them. They were about to run towards I when they saw man with a gun come out the front door, dragging a young girl by the hair. Her hands were bound behind her with duct tape. He was speaking to her in a stern voice, and when she answered, he hit her across her already swollen face. He shoved her into an outhouse, and growled something to her. He then stood guard on the little structure as if he were a sentry.
The two girls dove behind a hedge of low growing foliage. "Oh, my god! That's Kate!"
Lizzie whispered in a panicked voice.
"I know that's what she was wearing this morning, but her face is a mess. What do we do?"
"Let me think. We can't let him find us, and we have to rescue Kate." Lizzie's mind was racing, "Ok, you go back to the path and see if the Ranger is there. I'm going to stay here and make sure he doesn't kill Kate. When you get to the path, radio for help from the police. If we do that here, he might hear us."
"Lizzie, I'm not leaving you here!"
"You have to, Miranda. It's Kate's only hope."
Miranda looked into Lizzie's eyes for a long moment, first with concern, then with resolve, "Ok, but you don't be a hero. You wait till we get here unless he's going to shoot Kate." Lizzie nodded. "Promise!" she held out her pinkie.
Lizzie joined pinkies with her, but then Miranda threw her arms around her and hugged her. They looked out from around the hedge, and saw the pair headed back into the house. Without another word, Miranda crept from their cover, and dashed toward the path.
The girls rose early the next morning. If they had thought they were sore the day before, it was nothing to what they felt after a night of sleeping on the hard ground. Still, they all had to agree that they were having a great time. It was hard work, but the scenery was so beautiful, and not having phones and tv and all the other noise that came with their usual everyday lives was very relaxing. And paddling the canoes made them sore, but it also felt really good to use their muscles.
Ms. Mac, who regularly practiced yoga, led them in a series of "Sun Salutations," which stretched the whole body. They were amazed at how much better their tired muscles felt when they were done, and at how much energy it gave them. They all broke camp and got ready to move on. Claire actually took down the tent she and Kate shared without complaint, and cleaned their area.
Kate, who could have slacked off, actually helped with the other chores instead. This amazed everyone, except maybe Lizzie. She was dying to tell Miranda about the conversation she and Kate had had on the bus, but felt a strange loyalty to Kate to keep her secret and tell no one. Even Miranda. Lizzie watched Kate pitch in and try to blend in with the group, and thought that maybe, just maybe, the old old Kate ~ the one she they used to share all their secrets with ~ might be coming back.. She shook herself. Probably not. As soon as they got back to school, it would be business as usual, she was sure.
The rest of the day was pretty much like the last one, except that Claire seemed to have learned her lesson. Also, they were a little more acclimated to the long day and hard work, so spent more time around the campfire that night. Ms. Mac told them that they would be staying at that campsite for another day and night, and that tomorrow they would be going on a hike. They would pair off and use the skills they had learned the first day to follow a marked trail. She reminded them of the importance of staying on the path and about the snakes and other creatures they might encounter if they strayed off the path. After that, they talked and told stories and sang and made s'mores before calling it a night.
The next morning, when they woke, they found that Ms. Mac and her TA, Miss Rodriguez had gotten up before them and were already off marking the trails. Kate started some "Sun Salutations," and soon, most of the group was following along with her. They made breakfast, and were ready to eat when the Ms. Mac and Ms. Rodriguez returned.
Ms. Mac told the girls she was very pleased with them and the progress they had made. She was confident that they would enjoy themselves on their hike, and said that they would be given a card with either red or green on it. The ones with the green cards would take the green trail, and the ones with the red cards would take the red trail. They were to follow the trail, using the colored ribbons to guide them. Each pair had a guide book which identified plants and animals indigenous to the area, and they were to mark down at least ten that they saw along the way. The trails were very simple, and she would see them back at camp with lunch ready for them.
At noon, they all met back at camp, famished and ready to eat the next bear that wandered across their path. All, except Kate and Claire. No one worried too much, though, since they were the last to leave. Finally, Claire showed up without Kate.
Ms. Mac asked, "Claire, where is your partner?"
Claire looked confused, "Didn't she come back here?"
"No. You two were to stay together. That's why we go in pairs. Didn't you two stay on the path?" Ms. Mac was trying to stay calm, but her voice was starting to rise.
"Well, I saw a snake. Kate said she didn't think it was poisonous, but I didn't care. I ran. I must have gotten off the path, because I ended up in the middle of a bunch of trees. But I followed the river, and found the green ribbons and followed them here.
"So, Kate is still out there somewhere, probably looking for you?"
Claire hung her head and muttered, "I guess so."
Ms. Mac said, "Go eat! Who's done eating? I need someone to come with me to look for Kate."
Lizzie volunteered, much to Miranda's amazement. "Miranda, I can't imagine Kate out there all by herself. I would be so scared if I were her!"
Miranda decided she would go, too, but Ms. Mac told her to stay. She didn't want anyone else to account for in an emergency situation. She told Ms. R to see to it that everyone stayed put and said that they could keep in touch with the radio. She then asked Claire where she had last seen Kate, and she and Lizzie set off down the trail.
They headed down the trail, calling for Kate, and trying to find some sign of her being there. They had gone about 2 miles and were crossing a stream when two things happened: First, the Ms. Mac slipped on a rock, and there was a loud cracking sound. Her knee began to swell rapidly.
"Oh, my…" Lizzie was about to ask is she was ok, but it seemed like an unbelievably stupid question. "What can I do?"
Ms. Mac was in excruciating pain. "I'm going to need a splint and probably a stretcher to get back to camp. I'll call back to camp and get some help."
Lizzie, with Ms. Mac's help, soaked some bandages with cold water from the stream, and and bound the swelling knee. She searched for some sturdy tree branches, but couldn't find any that would do the job. She did, however, find a neon green water bottle sling.
She ran back to Ms. Mac. "This is Kate's! She's the only one with a sling this color. She has to have been here!"
When help arrived, they bound Ms. Mac's wounded leg to her other one with some bandages, and rigged up a blanket sled to pull her back to camp. Lizzie told them to go on without her, because she had to check out the spot where she had found the bottle.
"Lizzie, you can't stay here by yourself."
"Well, I'm not going to go and leave Kate out here alone. I found her water bottle in the woods. That can't be a good sign."
In the end Miranda, who had arrived with the help crew, was assigned to stay with her best friend. They were told to stay close to the path, and wait till the Ranger arrived to help them out. Ms. Mac handed Lizzie her radio, and made sure she knew how to use it before finally letting the girls take her back to the camp.
When they were gone, Lizzie turned to go back to where she had found the bottle. Miranda followed, and soon found a little keychain Kate always carried, with a heart-shaped frame and a picture of her dog. "Oh, wow, this is not good."
The looked some more, and found a tube of chap stick, and realized that they seemed to be following a sort of trail Kate had made for herself. Miranda thought they shouldn't go any farther until the Ranger got there, but Lizzie said Kate might be hurt and she wasn't going to wait. They finally decided to continue, but they would leave the "trail," intact so they could follow it back themselves. They put the keychain and the chapstick back where they had found it, and moved on.
They hadn't gone too far when they saw a cabin ahead of them. They were about to run towards I when they saw man with a gun come out the front door, dragging a young girl by the hair. Her hands were bound behind her with duct tape. He was speaking to her in a stern voice, and when she answered, he hit her across her already swollen face. He shoved her into an outhouse, and growled something to her. He then stood guard on the little structure as if he were a sentry.
The two girls dove behind a hedge of low growing foliage. "Oh, my god! That's Kate!"
Lizzie whispered in a panicked voice.
"I know that's what she was wearing this morning, but her face is a mess. What do we do?"
"Let me think. We can't let him find us, and we have to rescue Kate." Lizzie's mind was racing, "Ok, you go back to the path and see if the Ranger is there. I'm going to stay here and make sure he doesn't kill Kate. When you get to the path, radio for help from the police. If we do that here, he might hear us."
"Lizzie, I'm not leaving you here!"
"You have to, Miranda. It's Kate's only hope."
Miranda looked into Lizzie's eyes for a long moment, first with concern, then with resolve, "Ok, but you don't be a hero. You wait till we get here unless he's going to shoot Kate." Lizzie nodded. "Promise!" she held out her pinkie.
Lizzie joined pinkies with her, but then Miranda threw her arms around her and hugged her. They looked out from around the hedge, and saw the pair headed back into the house. Without another word, Miranda crept from their cover, and dashed toward the path.