Disneyworld Vacation
Part Two, Chapter Three
DISCLAIMER: Uh... (thinks hard) No... I don't think I own them just yet...
This is kind of a long chapter because half of it's sorta like filler. And YES WE FIND OUT WHO THE STALKER IS IN THIS CHAPTER! Thank you.
Some time later...
At long last, Wally staggered off the bus. It had been so crowded and noisy on the bus that he thought he'd suffocate before he made it to Epcot. He'd had no idea that Epcot was such a popular place!
Bunch of nerds, Wally thought as he got in line at security. Dick would like a place like this, he figured. Very educational. Why couldn't he have gone to Disney-MGM Studios instead?
That was the last time he let Dick issue orders!
Ah, well. He was here. He might as well go through with it.
The first place Wally checked was the giant golf ball at the entrance. Or whatever it was. There was nobody in there that looked even remotely like the dude with the hat.
Wally spent the next hour or so walking around Epcot, looking for Indy and wondering what 'Epcot' stood for. Dick had told him, but he'd forgotten already. All he was interested in was getting to the bottom of the mystery and getting back to the vacation.
Finally, Wally gave in to his desires and headed for 'The Land' building, where Soarin' was. It had recently been imported, so to speak, for the fiftieth anniversary of Disneyland's opening; the best rides and attractions from all of the Disney theme parks had been reconstructed right there in Disneyworld. Soarin' had come from Disneyland in California.
And boy was Wally glad of that!
The one thing he wasn't glad of was the line. Luckily, there were several Fast Pass kiosks for the painfully popular ride. So Wally bought one and then proceeded to wander around Epcot a little more.
He stopped off for a snack at the mini McDonald's in Showcase Plaza. Then Wally meandered back to Soarin' while munching on fries.
Okay, so there was a small line for Soarin', even in the Fast Pass lane. It was apparently more popular than he had figured. Wally sighed but waited his turn. When he got to the front and saw the mini video of the rules, he subconsciously recognized the man giving the rules—'Patrick'—as the guy who had done the voice of the wolf on Hoodwinked.
But was he the only person Wally recognized while in the line? No. Right in front of him was tall man with an Indiana Jones hat…
Oh, boy, had he hit the jackpot or what!
Wally tensed and forced himself to stand still, all while hoping that the mystery man wouldn't turn around.
In spite of the fact that Indy was right next to him, Wally had great fun on the ride. Soarin' more than lived up to its reputation. When they 'flew' over the orange grove, you could literally smell oranges, much like you could smell the apple pie during the Philharmagic 3-D show. Just smelling all those oranges made Wally hungry all over again.
But until Indy wanted something to eat as well, Wally refused to succumb to the hunger pangs. He needed to stay focused, and make sure he never let the mystery man out of his sight, even for a moment. He was a fast mover, and Wally knew he'd never catch the man without using his super speed. Which, of course, was impossible since his costume was back in Central City.
For an eternity, Wally followed the man with the Indiana Jones hat around Epcot—boring old Epcot—through Canada and the United Kingdom and France, all the way through Mexico.
Wally sighed, bored out of his skull, as they walked into the 'El Rio Del Tiempo' boat ride. He'd already been on one of these boring boat trips when Ollie had dragged them all onto the 'It's a Small World' ride. And he absolutely refused to go on another one of those things, even if it meant losing their man!
But then the man turned, took one look at Wally, and began to walk quickly towards the exit.
Wally followed, jogging swiftly to keep up with the mystery man's long strides.
Just wait'll I catch up with you… you are TOAST, mister! Burnt toast with extra butter, you son of a… Wally thought darkly as he ran.
He didn't know what happened after that. One moment, he was racing towards the giant golf ball. And the next, he was sprawled out on the ground, eating dirt.
Wally propped himself up on his elbows, still spitting dirt. He looked up to see the mystery man running through the entrance gates, out towards the bus stops.
"Darn it!" he snarled, pounding his fist into the ground. Then, wasting no time, Wally leapt up and followed him to one particular bus stop, just as the man leapt onto a bus and vanished.
Wally growled at his sudden change of luck. At least he knew where the man was headed—
Disney-MGM Studios.
Fifteen minutes later, another bus arrived, and Wally soon found himself at the Studios.
Finally! Yes! Disney-MGM Studios! I wonder if I'll run into Roy here…
No, he didn't. But he did find the mystery man over by the 'Lights! Motors! Action! Extreme Stunt Show', which had been imported from Disneyworld Paris.
Wally groaned.
Here we go again! How can this guy keep going like this? When I catch him, I'll murder him for ruining my vacation!
The red-head managed to stay close behind him up until Indy had actually snuck backstage. That was when the man lost the hat and put on a biking outfit instead, the kind motorcyclists wear.
So Wally picked up a spare costume and slid stealthily into a little building on the set with French writing on it. He wasn't sure what it said, but he did know several other things—one, that there was a motorcycle in there. And two, he had a friend back home who'd seen this show last month during his trip to Disneyworld. He'd described it in extreme detail to Wally, and he could still remember most of it:
During the second or third part of the show, the star was to race into the building with the motorcycle, put on a dark helmet, and crash through the multi-colored window with the bike.
Wally's plan was simple. As soon as the guy rushed in, Wally would knock him out and take his place for the rest of the show, all while chasing the mystery man. He was sure that nobody would notice any height or weight differences between the star and Wally. He'd be racing around on a motorcycle, for heaven's sake.
Okay, so he didn't exactly have a license yet. But he still knew how to operate a Harley.
A huge rumbling noise started up unexpectedly. Wally cringed and plugged his ears as the unmistakable roar of car engines and the smell of burning rubber filled his senses. If this kept up, he'd be deaf with a major headache in about twenty minutes. Loud rock music was one thing; loud cars were another.
After a while of roaring engines and burning motorcyclists (Don't worry, it was called a 'stunt show' for a reason. The man was a pro who was quickly doused in water about ten seconds later), the star of the show burst into the little building.
Wally stared at him, frozen.
The star stared back.
Finally, the teenager sprang into action. He leapt forward and bashed the guy's skull inside-out with his motorcycle helmet. Then he leapt onto the motorcycle, revved it up, sped up the small ramp, and crashed through the window like a pro.
He was looking for the mystery man, who was dressed as a motorcyclist.
There was just one thing wrong.
Everyone was dressed as a motorcyclist.
Wally groaned.
This could be a very long ride.
And then Wally noticed he was heading straight for another motorcycle. He just barely managed to avoid being hit, although he did scream pretty loudly first. That noise was covered up by the motorcycle, though.
Lucky for him.
If it ever got back to Roy that Wally had screamed, he'd be dead.
Of course, if the motorcycle show kept going the way it was, he just might be dead anyway.
-
But, of course, being a main character, Wally survived the stunt show (barely). He managed to stagger a good way away from the stunt show before collapsing onto a bench by the Great Movie Ride. Wally was too tired to even want to ride it.
Although you probably get to sit on that ride…
Wally grinned at the thought and dragged himself to his feet, only to freeze as he saw a very familiar face in the crowd.
In a very unusual costume.
Wally let out a snort and then a chuckle, eventually letting it escalate into full-blown hysterics. Roy heard the laughter and angrily stomped over to his fellow red-head.
Roy stopped in front of Wally's bench, arms akimbo.
"And what you are laughing at?" Roy snarled.
"You… you… Peter!" Wally managed to choke out.
"I couldn't find my normal clothes, okay! Now I've had a tough afternoon, West, so if you don't stop laughing in about two seconds, I'll smother you with my hat!"
Roy ripped the little green hat off his head and crushed it in a tight fist, holding it in front of Wally's face as a threat. But Wally was laughing so hard that his eyes were closed, so he couldn't see it. Roy finally figured that out and slapped the hat into his palm, frustrated.
Roy marched off a little way and waited for his 'friend' to quit laughing.
"Hey… hey Wally! Look at this!" Roy called after a minute.
"What is it? Did Tinkerbell fly away again?"
"I'm serious! Look!" Pause. "Will you get over here and look already!"
Finally, Wally ended his laughter with a cough and stood up.
"Alright, Peter, what is it?" Wally questioned, leaning against Roy. Suddenly, he straightened up and became very alert, surprised by what he saw.
"Whoa, Dick! What happened?"
Temporarily forgetting how silly Roy looked in his new wardrobe, the two boys went running towards Dick, who—quite frankly—looked as if he had been run over by a truck. Maybe more than one.
Wally and Roy each grabbed one of Dick's arms to hold him up. Dick just kind of stood there looking dazed.
"Hey, you okay?" Roy asked worriedly.
"…What?"
"I SAID are you OKAY!"
"Ouch…" muttered Dick, attempting to plug his ears as Roy screamed in them.
"But Dick, what happened?" Wally wanted to know. He had a good reason for wondering—Dick's hair was more of a disaster than usual, his clothes were horribly torn, and everything was smudged with dirt. There were even a few bloody scrapes on him.
"Oh, I… I was chasing 'Dr. Jones'." The disgust was evident as Dick said the name. "When he went backstage of the Indiana Jones… thing… I got myself a costume and snuck around. Almost had him, too."
That was where Dick stopped.
"So what happened?" Roy pressed.
"The show started and I got punched off a three story building… crashed through a false roof… thankfully there was an air mattress of some kind on the floor or I might have broken my neck… which I think I did anyway… ow…"
Wally and Roy exchanged glances, then nodded in mutual agreement without having to say a word. They proceeded to gently lead their friend over to the bench.
"I'm okay, guys, thanks," said Dick once he was seated. "Just a little shaken up, is all. Oh, man…"
Dick bent over and placed his hands on his knees, trying to get a grip on himself so he wouldn't look like a wimp in front of his friends. He had just been punched off a building. He was used to that kind of thing. He shouldn't be such a baby about it!
"You want something to drink or something?" asked Wally, who was still a little worried about Dick's apparent shock.
"No, I'm fine. Just gimme a second."
Dick leaned back against the bench and closed his eyes, breathing slowly through his nose, trying to calm himself. As he did so, a very familiar scent came his way.
Dick's eyes shot open. He would have recognized that scent in a blizzard.
Cologne.
But not just any cologne.
"Holy clincher…" he whispered.
"What was that, Dick?"
But Dick was no longer listening. He turned slowly, hypnotically, as he gazed at the man in the Indiana Jones hat, who was staring at them from less than four feet away. He blended in with the crowd quite well to the untrained eye, but the man's presence was all too obvious as far as Dick was concerned.
And the second he vanished around a corner, Dick leapt up with a grunt and raced after him, leaving two very confused red-heads behind him.
"Yo, Dick!"
"Where ya goin'!"
Dick pumped his legs as hard as he could, bound and determined to catch the man this time.
The man was not going to get away again.
And after a little while, Dick's adversary seemed to realize this.
Dick rounded a corner near Echo Lake and practically bumped into the man he had been chasing for almost two full days now. He gasped in shock as he skidded to a halt and stared up at the imposing figure before him. It all seemed so obvious to him now. So obvious…
THUMP!
THWACK!
"Yowch!"
Wally and Roy, who had been following Dick this whole time, weren't expecting their friend to be so close to the corner and promptly smacked into the pair of them. All four went down; the mystery man held onto his hat as they fell, still preventing them from seeing his face.
But that didn't matter to Dick.
He knew…
"Watch it, you clumsy idiot! Geez…!" Roy howled, giving Wally a push.
"Oh, shut up! It was your fault!"
"Hey, look who we caught!"
The red-headed teens stood up to gaze at the man lying below them, whose hat was still covering his face. Dick, however, stayed on the ground, kneeling over the man.
And finally, Dick ripped off the hat.
The other boys gasped, but Dick simply nodded, his face the very picture of anger.
Bruce Wayne just gazed at his ward with as embarrassed an expression as would ever cross his handsome face.
"You didn't really think I'd let you go alone, did you?" he said with a rather sheepish shrug.
Dick just glared.
Me: Congratulations, all you smart people out there! You all knew by, like, the second chapter. Good for you! Oh, and Wally was right about the guy from Hoodwinked. It really is Patrick Warburton giving the Soarin' rules. Which is kind of weird because Hoodwinked isn't even a Disney movie.
Dick: Did you also mean what you said about the 'It's a Small World' ride?
Me: YES! Classic it may be, but it will drive you completely out of your skull.
Dick: Well that explains why you act so weird. Would it explain your behavior BEFORE your Disneyworld vacation?
Me (glaring): Just wait until my next story, pal... you are SO in trouble...
Dick: I'd like to see you try!
Me: Alright, then! It's a deal!
Dick: Me and my big mouth...
Reviewer Replies
Yourperfectdisaster-Okay, okay, we confess. She was picking up a few hints from Dan Brown and The Da Vinci Code. Anyway, we all know who the stalker is now (ah-hem) so you don't have to wonder any more!
caltha-Don't be sad--here I am :) Okay, so you think I'm cute, but you think I'm a geek. (pause) I think I'll settle for that! Thanks!
CrazyInsomaniac-Alright, I forgive you :) LOL, you have a point about the conscience thing, and as for Mr. Queen... I think he'll live. And Panamint says thanks for the cookie!
Zarz-Sorry for the stalker confusion; I guess TAP should have put a little note to say that the last chapter took place before the Indiana Jones stunt show. She says she'll work on that. Anyway... you've got Splash Mountain? Roy will be very glad to hear that!