"Deja vu and Agents Too"



(A.N. This is the chapter where I had originally planned this story to begin...before I added all that stuff in the beginning.)



The orange sun slowly peeked over the horizon. The sunlight first made contact with the rotating blades of the windmill. The reflections on the metallic blades would've blinded a person, even with sunglasses on. The sunlight then touched the roof of the house and slowly crept down the outside wall like molasses. It approached the upstairs window and leaked inside. Ten minutes later, the beams of light fell on the pink dog lying on the foot of the bed, as if being summoned by a higher authority (which he's not.) The black spot on his back became visible as Courage slowly began to wake up. The early morning sun created a golden aura of light in the bedroom that was common this time of year. Courage yawned mightily as he tried to remember what day today was. Then, he gasped, and a 'Yay!' jumped out of his mouth...for he just remembered that today was THE day. The day the Hendersons would finally arrive again.

Courage quickly rushed over to Muriel, who was still asleep, and nudged her shoulder to wake her up.

"Wake up. Wake up!" said Courage, who couldn't contain his excitement.

Muriel opened her eyes and yawned. "G'morning, Courage. I see you're excited about today."

"Mmm-hm!" answered Courage.

Muriel leaned over and tried to wake Eustace up. Her response was a garbled, "Gimme five more minutes, Ma."

It goes without saying that it took a bit of doing to get Eustace out of bed. Eventually, the task was complete, and the three inhabitants of the farmhouse sat at the kitchen table to eat breakfast. That is, until Eustace grumbled, "What are you doing at the table, dog?" So Courage ended up eating on the floor, but he didn't care. He was too anxious....and Eustace wasn't going to ruin it.

The Hendersons had made it clear that they would arrive at Courage's house right before lunch, so, immediately after breakfast, Muriel began working on a "Welcome Back" lunch to surprise the Hendersons with. She told Eustace to go down to the store and get all the ingredients necessary for their arrival. Eustace reluctantly agreed and came back to see Muriel and Courage working away in the kitchen. Eustace decided at that moment to go back to the store.

"Whatever for?" asked Muriel.

"I need to get stuff for me, don't I?" shot back Eustace.

"Well, make sure you get back before the Hendersons arrive. And fill up the tank while you're in town, y'hear?"

Eustace grumbled in agreement as he headed toward the truck.

"Honestly, that man would loose his head if it weren't attached to his neck," said Muriel as she stirred a pot on the stove.

Courage nodded in agreement as his eyes watered up, since he was cutting an onion.



"We can't be lost again!" shouted Diane Henderson to her husband.

"Well, I know for sure we're in the right state," argued Carl. "I just need to figure out which way to go now."

The Henderson's car was stopped at a T-intersection somewhere in Kansas. Carl had once again gone on another of his "shortcuts" and had gotten the whole family lost. Both parents were standing in front of the car, while the kids and Sandy stayed in the backseat.

"Kevin?" asked Carl.

"Sorry, Dad!" shouted Kevin through the window. "But I forgot to recharge my laptop!" Kevin groaned to himself. He didn't know whom to be more mad at, Dad or himself.

"Well, try your phone again, dear," said Kevin's mother.

Kevin sighed. Last time he tried that, there wasn't any signal. Kevin reached into his pocket and grabbed his cell phone, but before he could dial the number, he stopped. Kevin stole a quick glance at Katie. Normally, she was outgoing and excited all the time. But ever since they left that cemetery in San Francisco, she had barely spoken a word, except to Mr. Furry. For some reason, Kevin was afraid to ask Katie what was wrong with her. He didn't know why, but something in the back of his mind told him to leave it alone for now.

Kevin dialed Courage's number and sighed in disappointment. Still no signal. Now what?

As she watched the Hendersons try to hopelessly figure out where they were, Sandy decided to take matters into her own paws. She got out of the car and onto the roof. She put her snout up into the wind and sniffed the air. Nothing. She tried harder. Still nothing. Kevin got out of the car and asked what she was doing. A "Ssshhh!" was his answer. Sandy paused for a moment. She imagined herself as a wolf. An ancestral beast with a sense of smell that knew no boundaries. Sandy then inhaled a giant breath of air. Finally, a faint, almost undetectable scent was picked up by Sandy's sensitive nose. Sandy didn't know how to explain it, but somehow she now knew which direction the family should take to get to Courage's house. Sandy quickly whispered into Kevin's ear the directions, and Kevin gave Sandy a hug before letting his parents know which way to go.

"Are you sure?" they asked.

"Trust me," said Kevin.

Seeing no other choice, Carl and Diane got back in the car, and the Hendersons headed in the direction that Kevin told them. Kevin smiled at Sandy (a silent Thank you), but she was too busy looking at Katie. Like Kevin, Sandy knew that something was wrong with Katie. But Sandy could detect that whatever was wrong with Katie was much more serious (and darker) than Kevin realized. Sandy felt like telling this information to Kevin. But not now.

Turned out, the Hendersons were only ten miles away from Nowhere.



Courage looked through the attic window in front of his computer. He stared down at the road that led to the horizon. Any second now, he said to himself, the Henderson's car would come racing down the road towards him.

Downstairs, everything was set. The dinner table had a green tablecloth that matched the living room rug. The kitchen was transformed into an elaborate formal luncheon. Everything from appetizers to desserts were sprawled out on the kitchen counters. Extra places were set at the table. Eustace and Muriel sat anxiously in the living room, waiting for the re-arrival of the Hendersons. Actually, Muriel was more anxious then Eustace. Eustace was slightly annoyed since he was missing his favorite TV show.

Was that them? No, just a semi truck. Courage sighed as he watched the 18-wheeler appear on the horizon and whoosh past the farmyard.

He glanced at his computer. If it were turned on, it would no doubt be mocking Courage about how he was waiting for Sandy. Thank goodness for off-switches.

Was that them? No, just a biker gang.

Courage sighed again. This waiting around for loved ones was harder than it looked. Courage immediately wondered if he should refer to the Hendersons as "loved ones". He felt a sort of devotion towards them. They never mistreated him in any way. Especially Sandy. So, in the end, Courage decided to classify the Hendersons as loved ones, as long as he kept it to himself.

After waiting a while longer, Courage was just about to go back downstairs when some movement on the horizon caught his eye. A vehicle was coming down the road. It was a station wagon filled with luggage. The Henderson's station wagon!

Like a pink lightning bolt, Courage shot down the stairs and tugged at Muriel's dress. Courage garbled a bunch of syllables at her with a smile on his face. Muriel figured out why Courage was so excited (for once) and called out to Eustace.

"Eustace! The Hendersons are coming!"

"Blah, blah, blah," said Eustace, who arose from his seat.

"Now look alive, boys," said Muriel. "We're gonna surprise them with all the food in the kitchen, so try and enjoy yourselves, okay?"

"Oh, alright," grumbled Eustace.

Courage nodded eagerly. He was jumping up and down with excitement until Eustace told him to cut it out.



The Hendersons parked the station wagon next to Eustace's truck. The family got out of the car and stared a minute at the rickety farmhouse on the outskirts of Nowhere. It seemed like yesterday they were pulling in here for the first time. It also seemed like forever since they were here last, instead of almost three weeks. As the Hendersons walked up to the front door, Carl said, "Y'know, strange as this may sound, I kind of like coming back here."

"Yeah, me too," said Kevin. Sandy nodded her head in agreement. Diane still felt a little frightened about what had happened last time she was here, but decided to show support for her family and agreed with them.

As Carl knocked on the door, Sandy and Kevin looked at Katie again. She was staring at Mr. Furry as if she was expecting him to say something to her. Sandy and Kevin exchanged worried glances.

"Hello?" asked Carl, who pushed the door open. It was surprisingly dark inside. Carl took a step inside. "Hello?" he called out again.

"Carl, I don't..." began Diane.

"SURPRISE!" shouted Muriel as the lights blinked on. In the middle of the living room was a large banner that said "Welcome back, Hendersons" on it. Muriel and Courage were behind the sofa while Eustace was at the light switch. The Hendersons were indeed surprised. Muriel and Eustace wasted no time greeting the Hendersons. As the people greeted each other, Courage heard a small voice cry out, "Courage!" He looked and saw Sandy running towards him. Before he knew it, Sandy gave Courage a great big hug. Courage smiled; he had waited over two and a half weeks for this moment.

"I missed you so much," said Sandy in Courage's ear.

"Me too," answered Courage.

They held each other until they heard "Awww"s coming from the Hendersons and Muriel. After that, they let each other go, out of embarrassment, but before they could say anything, Carl announced, "What is that delicious smell?"

The Hendersons caught sight of the food. "Did you make all that for us?" asked a shocked Diane. "Oh, Muriel, you shouldn't have!"

"It was the least I could do, Diane," answered Muriel.

"Well, let's eat! I'm starving!" exclaimed Eustace.

"Me too!" said Kevin, and he ran into the kitchen, followed by everyone else.

Courage went into the kitchen last. He was so hungry and Sandy was talking to him so intently, he didn't notice that Katie was looking at him a little oddly...



And speaking of odd events, it was around this time that the secret agents arrived in Nowhere. By this time, the agents were nearly at each other's throats. Agent Gammon was driving this time, and Agent Barsby kept saying that he drove the RV better than Gammon. The only music anyone thought to bring was a Craig David CD that Agent Darkest Moon brought along, but Agent Jonathan R didn't want to hear it because "he wasn't in the mood." Everything from rest stops to directions to conversations always ended up in an argument between the four agents. As they approached Nowhere, they were already deep in another argument.

"Gammon, you're on the yellow line, again," said Barsby.

"I keep telling you, Barsby, it's this RV! It's so wide!" shouted Gammon.

"Guys," said Agent D.M., trying to get their attention.

"I'm just saying you shouldn't go too far into the opposite lane," continued Barsby.

"How would you know?!" blurted out Gammon. "Where you come from, they drive on the other side of the road!"

Agent R interrupted them. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Did we ask you to join this conversation, Mr. R?" complained Gammon.

"Guys," said D.M., again.

"No, Gammon, you didn't," answered Agent R, sarcastically.

"Then stay out of it. This one's between him and me," declared Gammon, as he pointed to Barsby.

"If he kept both hands on the steering wheel, maybe I wouldn't complain about his driving!" shouted Barsby.

"Hey, guys!" yelled little D.M. "Are we...?"

Gammon interrupted her. "D.M., if you ask us 'Are we there yet' one more time..."

"We ARE there!" interrupted Agent R. "See?!" He pointed out in front of the van. The RV was just about to pass a sign on the side of the road that read "Nowhere City Limits".

After a while, Agent R spoke up again. "You guys know what our problem is?"

"Yeah," said Gammon. "I'm stuck in a vehicle with a bunch of philistines." (As you can see, Gammon is not in the best of moods right now.)

Agent R ignored his remark. "We've been stuck inside this camper for the past five hours. I say the first motel in Nowhere we come to, we get a room there. Does that sound like a good idea?"

For once, everyone agreed.

They didn't wait long to find one. The RV rode into the parking lot and was turned off.

"Now remember," said Agent R as the four agents headed toward the motel lobby. "We're tourists from Virginia. We do not blow our cover as agents unless absolutely necessary. We have a lot riding on our shoulders for this investigation, so I expect it to run like clockwork, got it?"

Gammon and Barsby agreed. D.M. agreed, too, as she clutched at her camera. She was determined to follow her orders and take pictures of anything out of the ordinary.

She wouldn't be disappointed. You see, the motel that the agents were planning on staying at was called "The Katz Motel".



(Looks like some familiar bad guys will be making appearances in my story. If you liked the Courage villains in other fanfics, you're REALLY gonna like them coming from me. I'm gonna try and put in as many bad guys into this story as possible, as well as an original "super-villain", so don't worry....you're in for a treat!)