Episode 4: The Mystery Pest

Tom and Jerry were enjoying another movie night with Robyn and her father, and this time, the four were watching Planet of the Apes since Robyn loved science fiction as much as fantasy when it came to movies and books. They all enjoyed the film, and Tom and Jerry were even happier when Robyn was holding them close and occasionally giving them nuzzles just to remind the cat-and-mouse duo that she loved them. They were her pets, after all.

Later in the evening, Robyn was in her pajamas and snuggled up in her bed while her father read to her. Tom and Jerry sat together through the story, and when it ended, Mr. Starling took care to pet the two before returning his attention to his little daughter.

"Good night, sweetheart," he said warmly, kissing Robyn on the cheek. "Sleep well."

"You too, Daddy," Robyn replied to her father.

With that, Robyn's father left the room, and Robyn settled down to sleep with Tom and Jerry cuddled up beside her. The three friends slept soundly for the first hours of the night, but that was about to change. Around four in the morning, Tom and Jerry were awakened by a sound coming from outside.

"Huh? Wha-? What's going on?" mumbled Jerry.

"Sounds like someone banging pots and pans around," surmised Tom.

Robyn was not so lucky either and woke up as she heard the clanging that was clearly coming from outside her window. She crawled out from her covers and said, "What's with the early morning music concert?"

"Don't look at us, Robyn. We're in here with you the whole time," replied Jerry.

Tom and his mouse buddy exchanged a confused look with Robyn, and when they had had quite enough of the noise, Jerry took a bucket and filled it with water from the kitchen sink. Then he filled it with ice from the freezer to turn it cold. Upon bringing it upstairs, he opened Robyn's bedroom window and upon seeing a solitary figure below clanging and banging a saucepan on a cooking pot, he poured the water on that figure. An ear-splitting screech a second later told Jerry he had done his job. With that out of the way, he and Tom snuggled back under Robyn's bedcovers and their young owner joined them.

…

The next day was Thursday, and Robyn was off to school and her father off to his office at Starling Industries. Tom and Jerry were busy with their daily schedule of eating first, then chasing each other outside for the exercise, and then they went to the family room to watch TV over cheese and milk. However, their noise problem wasn't taken care of just yet. Outside, there came a weird sound like a party horn. At first, the cat and mouse ignored it, but there were soon more and more horns being played, or so it seemed.

"I'll take care of this joker, Jerry," said Tom with a nod. With that, he went down to the basement and fetched a bowling ball, and then opened the window to the family room and bowled it clean through the yard until the noise maker was out of his and Jerry's hair. Unfortunately, Tom and Jerry were no closer to finding out who was behind it. When Robyn and her father came home, the two friends told her and her father about the situation.

"I only hope whoever's behind it doesn't try to wake us up in the middle of the night," Robyn said as she brushed back her golden-blonde hair. "I've been yawning all morning."

"Tell us about it," moaned Jerry with a stretch. "If that creep comes back here, Tom and I are not letting him get away with it."

"I hope you're right," said Robyn as she ruffled Tom and Jerry's fur.

That evening, as Robyn and her father were having dinner, Tom and Jerry had their usual milk and cheese while keeping their ears wide in case the noise-making prankster showed up again. Their vigilance was not in vain, for not long after dinner started, there came a sound of several alarm clocks ringing from upstairs.

"What on this earth is going on this evening?" wondered Mr. Starling.

"I say we go and find out about this," suggested Tom.

And with that, he and Jerry and Robyn crept up the stairs and approached Robyn's room. Jerry slowly pushed the door open, and the three friends saw that a great pile of alarm clocks were heaped on Robyn's bed. And if that wasn't weird enough, a huddled figure was in the corner checking every draw in the room for something. Robyn turned on the light, and who should Tom and Jerry see but Butch, the cat who was Tom's occasional friend and rival? He saw Tom and Jerry standing there, but he didn't recognize Robyn and immediately tried to escape. He tossed all the alarm clocks out the window and tried to scale the house, but Tom caught him by the tail and dragged him back in before closing the window.

Jerry hopped up on Tom's head and said, "Okay, Butch. Time to spill the cheese, 'cause we're not letting you out until we hear an explanation."

The disgruntled Butch huffed and replied, "All right, you got me. Ever since you two disappeared a month back, I've been trying to find you guys and had no success until I saw that story in the news about you saving a rich little girl and getting a new and better home. I only caused all that noise so I could get your attention."

"Well, you could have just knocked on the door," said young Robyn with a frown.

Butch sighed and nodded without a word. He would have left with a downcast face, but Tom and Jerry were glad that the mysterious noise maker was someone they knew and after they had explained everything to Robyn and her father, Butch was allowed to visit just as long as he announced his presence properly. So Butch got to meet Robyn and was given a tour of the Starling family mansion and then was given food and milk. When he headed back to his home, Butch shook hands with Tom and Jerry and with Robyn and her father, and that evening at the Starling house saw a good night's sleep for the whole family.

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed the appearance of another original Tom and Jerry character. Enjoy reading, and keep an eye out for Chapter 5.