"The 'Pink Dog' Mystery: Solved"



It was a few hours before morning finally arrived. The thunderstorm had come and gone. A cold front had decreased the temperature, but not by much. A slight gale caused the blades of the windmill to squeak and moan in the wind.

Inside the house, Kevin and Sandy were awakened by a thump coming from the basement. Both of them sat up straight on the couch with their eyes wide open, but it was only Kevin's dad clumsily walking up the stairs.

"Morning, son. Morning, Andy," Carl yawned.

"It's Sandy," corrected Kevin. As you can see, Carl's mind is very foggy before his cup of coffee.

"Where you going, Dad?" asked Kevin.

"Oh, I'm just going to fix some breakfast. We should surprise that nice old couple with a good old-fashioned Hendersons breakfast for a change. Want to help?"

Kevin got up to follow his father, but he stopped when Carl asked him, "Did you sleep well, son?"

Kevin glanced over his shoulder at Sandy, who was still on the couch. She motioned for Kevin not to say anything. Kevin smirked, as if to say, "Well, duh!"

"Yeah, Dad, I...uh...slept okay." With that, Kevin and Sandy entered the kitchen as Carl began getting out a bunch of kitchen utensils.

By the time the rest of the Hendersons arrived in the kitchen, all the equipment had been put out and the food was ready to be prepared. Of course, Kevin and Sandy were rather nervous when Katie and Mr. Furry entered the room, but they said nothing and tried to keep their minds on making breakfast.

"Honey?" asked Diane to her husband. "Do you know where Muriel keeps the egg beater?"

Meanwhile, upstairs, Courage yawned. Behind him, Muriel and Eustace were just about to wake up. Courage briefly shivered upon remembering the events of last night. He thought about going downstairs to see if Kevin and Sandy were alright, but a queer feeling inside Courage caused him to turn towards the window. Courage hopped to the floor and traveled over to the window. Courage was definitely surprised by what he saw.

From the second story of the house, you could see for miles into the distance. You never could see much of anything else, but on this morning, Courage saw something new. Something that stuck out of the surroundings like a sore thumb.

It was a recreational vehicle...one of those camper vans that charge down interstates with the power of a semi truck. Judging from the tire tracks, this RV had driven off the road and parked about a football-field's length away from the house.

Courage gulped. He remembered the LAST time a camper van was parked on the property. It had belonged to an old Hispanic woman who assumed Muriel's identity in order to rob a bank for her husband's operation (who was just a hand). Courage could remember the resulting high-speed road chase as if it happened yesterday.

"Oh look!" exclaimed Muriel, who came up behind Courage. "More visitors! Our place must be more popular than I thought."

"Terrific," muttered Eustace. "We might as well put up a 'Hotel' sign on the roof!" He grumbled all the way to the bathroom.

"Well, the more the merrier. I...mmm, Courage, what is that delicious smell?"

Courage sniffed the air. His stomach rumbled as his nose detected the aromas of eggs and pancake batter coming from downstairs.

"Oh my! Smells like the Hendersons already have breakfast underway!" Muriel knocked on the bathroom door. "Hurry up, Eustace!"

"Hold yer horses, I'm almost done!" he shouted.

Courage ran back to the window, hoping the RV had disappeared. To his dismay, it was still there.

Inside the RV, the agents were waking up. One by one, the agents went to the lavatory to change out of their slept-in agent clothes and into their tourist clothes (Hawaiian shirts, shorts, etc.)

"Ugh," moaned Agent Barsby, who rubbed his rear. It was still sore from when he landed on the car at the motel. "That was definitely NOT one of our better nights."

The other agents agreed. "What now?" asked Agent Darkest Moon.

"Well," thought Agent R, "Let's recap. We arrived in Nowhere at the Katz Motel, interviewed the tenants, interviewed the townspeople, got scared out by the tenants, and arrived here. We've learned that the motel is infested with suspicious characters, the town is infested with suspicious characters, and our common curiosity is all that's keeping us from going insane."

Agent Gammon noticed Barsby and D.M. looking at him oddly. Knowing what they were thinking, Gammon quickly said, "Hey, I'm no more insane than the rest of you!"

"Right," muttered D.M.

Barsby changed the subject. "And let's not forget about that pink dog."

"Ah yes, I almost forgot. This 'pink dog' could possibly be the link between all these citizens of Nowhere. D.M., you've got to take photos of this dog the moment you see him, okay?"

"Right-o, Agent R," answered D.M.

"Um, R?" interrupted Barsby. "Have you figured out whether this dog is good or evil yet?"

"Well, only the motel tenants said the dog was evil, right? So, since we all know that those characters were definitely evil, the pink dog MUST be good or else he would've been there at the motel with the tenants!"

"But what about the old lady and old man it lives with?" questioned Gammon.

"Oh, I'm sure we're going to find out eventually," said Agent R. "But first thing's first. D.M., I want you to develop those photos while the rest of us get breakfast."

D.M. quirked an eyebrow. "Hey!"

"Just kidding. You can come along too, D.M." Agent R turned and exited the RV.

Gammon and Barsby looked at each other in shock. That was the first time they had ever seen Agent R express a sign of humor! The three remaining agents left the RV.

"So...where do we go now?" asked D.M. The four agents stood next to the RV, looking down the road from which they came.

Agent R walked around to the other side of the vehicle. "Hey, guys! Let's see if anyone lives there!"

The three other agents came up behind Agent R and saw what he was looking at. Not too far away was a farmhouse. A windmill stood next to it, and two vehicles were parked out front...a pickup truck and a station wagon.

"C'mon, I'm starved!" shouted D.M., but Agent R stopped her.

"Hold it, D.M. Don't forget we're tourists here, not agents, alright? We must remain undercover unless absolutely necessary. Does everyone understand?"

Gammon, Barsby, and D.M. agreed.

"Good. Let's go get some breakfast!"

As the agents walked toward the house, Eustace, Muriel, and Courage were greeted with a grand breakfast, courtesy of the Hendersons. Plates stacked with muffins, eggs, bacon, sausages, and a stack of pancakes dripping with butter and syrup. There was a huge jug of orange juice and another filled with milk. It was a good thing Muriel had stored all the food and drinks in the storage closets for just such and occasion.

"Oh my!" exclaimed Muriel. "This is one of the most lovely breakfasts I've ever seen!"

Courage agreed. His mouth watered as he observed the plates of food. He looked at each member of the Henderson family and marveled at their act of kindness. Of course, a chill went up Courage's back when he saw Katie and Mr. Furry, but he calmed down when Sandy brought him a dog bowl filled with breakfast food.

"Thank you so much!" said Muriel to the Hendersons. "You really shouldn't have."

"You're welcome, and it was the least we could do to thank you for your hospitality," said Diane Henderson.

"Enough with the talking!" shouted Eustace rudely. "Let's eat!"

With that, everyone went to take a plate and walked up to the food.

"Courage?" asked Muriel. "Why don't you and Sandy get cleaned up before eating?"

So, Courage and Sandy turned and left the room. Both of them walked into the backyard towards the water pump. However, Sandy suddenly said, "Hey, Courage, maybe it would be a better idea if you got cleaned up in the bathroom."

Courage grinned sheepishly, remembering the last time he saw Sandy at the water pump. "But, someone has to work the pump," he said in defense.

Sandy looked at Courage with a half-smile on her face. "Well, alright. Promise you'll look away while I clean up?"

"Promise," said Courage...with his fingers tied behind his back.

Back at the house, the Hendersons had all sat down at the table. Eustace and Muriel were just about to sit down as well, but suddenly, just at that moment, the doorbell rang!

"Who could that be?" asked Muriel to herself. She went to open the door and was greeted with a strange sight.

Before her stood four people. One was a young girl wearing sandals, shorts, a tie-dye T-shirt, and a Sailor Moon wristwatch. Next to her stood a tall man wearing an identical outfit, except he wore a wristwatch with a British flag on it. Nearby, another man wore a Hawaiian T-shirt and shorts. A spiky-haired hedgehog was inked on each of his Nikes. In the middle, stood a man with Reeboks, shorts and a loud, striped shirt. All four of them wore their trademark sunglasses. The one in the middle, Agent R, spoke first.

"Good morning, madam. Would it be too much trouble if we could have some breakfast on this fine day?" Agent R grinned. His fellow agents all tried to keep a straight face.

"Why, of course!" said kind-hearted Muriel. "I'm sure we have plenty of food for everyone."

"Oh, you already have guests? Well, I'm sorry if we..."

"Oh no, no! Please come in!" Muriel stepped back. The visitors sat down in the living room as Muriel went back into the kitchen.

"Guess what, everyone!" she announced. "We have a few more visitors here. Would anyone mind if they stay for breakfast?"

"Fine by us," said Carl. "We have more than enough food for everyone, I'm sure." The other members of the Henderson family agreed.

At that moment, Agent R leaned back in his chair and peeked into the kitchen. Kevin Henderson caught sight of Agent R, who quickly returned to his seat. Kevin had a feeling he had seen that person before.

"Guys?" muttered Agent R. "Guess who's eating breakfast in the kitchen."

D.M. gasped. "Not the motel tenants!"

"No," said Agent R. "It's the family that we interviewed at the museum yesterday!"

"The Fredricksons?" asked Gammon with amazement.

"No, that wasn't it." Agent R reached into his shorts pocket and took out a small notebook. "They are the Hendersons. Carl, Diane, Kevin, and Katie." Agent R slapped his forehead. "Great. We already told them our names and that we're government officials."

"Brilliant," mumbled Gammon. "Why bother wearing these outfits?" He glanced down at his tourist clothes.

"I guess some apologies are in order." As Agent R stood up, an idea came to mind. "And we could say that we've finished our investigation and are heading home, so as not to arouse suspicion. Then, we'll say we had some car trouble and we stopped here to get something to eat!"

"Yeah! That could work," replied Barsby.

Muriel's head poked into the living room. "You visitors can come in now if you want."

"Let's go," said Agent R. The four agents walked to the kitchen.

"Muriel!" shouted Eustace. "Who's in the living room?"

Before, Muriel could answer, the agents entered the kitchen. At first, the Hendersons didn't know what to make of them, with their loud outfits and their wandering eyes. Then Kevin recognized who they were.

"Hey! Aren't you guys the government people who interviewed us at the museum yesterday?"

Agent R acted shocked. "Why, yes! Yes, we are! What a coincidence to meet up with you again." Carl was going to say something, but Agent R kept talking. "And let me start off by saying that we're sorry we were so intrusive yesterday. We didn't know you were only visitors of Nowhere. We were just doing our job."

"That's perfectly alright," said Diane. "But in the future, make sure you know if the people you're interviewing are visitors or not first."

Agent R smiled. "Absolutely, um, Diane, right?"

Diane turned to Carl. "He has a good memory, doesn't he, Carl?"

"I'm sure they all do, dear," said Carl. He still hadn't gotten his coffee.

Agent R was about to say something to his partners, but they were too busy staring at all the breakfast food. "Can we eat now?" whispered Barsby.

"Help yourselves," said Muriel, overhearing.

As the agents filled their plates with food, an extra table was brought into the kitchen for the agents to sit at.

As he took his first bite, Gammon had a funny feeling about this place. It wasn't until he took a good look at Eustace and Muriel that something clicked. He leaned over to Agent R. "Hey, um, remember what you said about the pink dog living with an old man and an old woman?"

Agent R immediately glanced at Eustace and Muriel. He stopped eating. "Then...that means..."

The back door opened up behind the table. As the agents turned in their seats, Muriel said, "There you are, Courage. You're missing breakfast!"

Agent R couldn't believe it. "The pink dog," he whispered to himself.

Courage stood in the doorway looking at everyone. His fur was all wet, because Sandy had washed Courage with the water pump shortly after Courage washed Sandy. He had tried shaking himself dry, but water still clung to his fur. Sandy told Courage to head to the house before her, since she wanted to look at the sunrise some more.

The moment Courage saw the new visitors, he began to feel uneasy. For one thing, those Hawaiian outfits made them look out of place, like they were trying too hard to be tourists or something. More importantly, the four visitors sat as still as statues...and they were looking right at Courage. D.M. was the only one who had taken her sunglasses off. Her eyes were wide with amazement, and Courage guessed that her friends also had the same expressions behind their shades.

"This is our dog, Courage," said Muriel. "Say hello, Courage,"

Courage waved at them, shakily. Agent R leaned towards D.M. "Take some pictures," he whispered. Immediately, D.M. brought out her camera and snapped some photos of Courage as if he was a Hollywood actor.

Courage began wondering what to do next, when suddenly, D.M. stopped. The camera fell from her hands (it's on a strap), and her mouth opened wide. At the same time, Sandy, with her fur still wet, came up behind Courage and caught sight of the agents.

"Oh, that's our dog, Sandy," said Kevin.

Now the agents were REALLY feeling nervous. Two pink dogs? Agent R began glancing around the room as if he expected pink dogs to appear all over the place. He turned to Muriel. "Uh, where's the bathroom?"

"Upstairs, by the..."

"Thank you," Agent R said quickly. He and his fellow agents abruptly got up from their chairs and raced up the stairs.

"Who were they?" asked Courage.

"Kevin told me they were 'secret agent' people, but they sure don't act like secret agents."

"That's where they fool you," whispered Kevin under the table. "They say their done with their investigation, but us three are the only ones who know better. And, more importantly, we need to stop them from investigating Katie. Who knows what would happen if they discover her bear is possessed?"

The two dogs nodded with worry. Kevin's expression changed as he said, "Why are you two so wet?"

Courage answered, "We were just getting cleaned up out by the water pump."

Kevin quirked an eyebrow. Sandy rolled her eyes and said, "Nothing happened." She softly hit Kevin in the leg and returned to her food bowl. Courage put his paws on his hips and quirked an eyebrow at Kevin. "My bad," said Kevin and continued eating breakfast. Courage just sighed and went to his food bowl.

In the bathroom, the agents were trying to stay calm. "What now??!!" blurted D.M.

"Okay, okay, everyone calm down," announced Agent R. He rubbed his aching head with his hand. "It's obvious we've arrived at the right place, correct?"

"Obviously," answered D.M.

"Absolutely," replied Barsby.

"I wonder why those two dogs were so wet," mumbled Gammon, his mind wandering.

Agent R took off his sunglasses and gave Gammon a weird look. "Gammon, try to keep your twisted mind on the subject at hand." He turned to Barsby and D.M. "Now listen up. I think it's best if we stay in the RV for the remainder of the visit. It appears to be a full house here anyway."

"Good idea," said Barsby.

"Plus, D.M. needs to develop those pictures once she's finished with her roll...or at least, once she gets her bat back."

"Yeah," said D.M. She had forgotten about that.

"Alright, men...and D.M.," announced Agent R. "Those sound like good ideas, but if we don't get anything to eat soon, we're not gonna be able to carry them out!"

So that's how breakfast went. The agents, the Hendersons, Eustace, Muriel, and Courage all sat at the table. The agents introduced themselves to Muriel and Eustace, but they didn't say much else. Even though everyone thought the breakfast was delicious, they couldn't help glancing at everyone else and wondering if something else was going on that they didn't know about.

Needless to say, the amount of trust in the room was at an all-time low.



(Can Kevin, Sandy, and Courage protect Katie from the nosy agents? How can they if they don't know all the details about the ghostly possession? And will D.M. get those photos developed?...or, more importantly, will she get her bat back? The answers coming soon...)