And now… Fillmore

Today's episode: Cry, the Beloved Mascot

Act 1: A Spirit Stolen

Spirit Week, a celebratory event which competes the spirit of X Middle School against the spirit of Gilby Middle School. Several rides and games were laid out with the same theme as their respective mascots, but on this night, every student and parent have their attention at the parade held at the game track.

"Hola, everyone! Once again, it's Spirit Week here at X Middle School! And to kick off this week-long celebration is the 18th annual Spirit Week parade! Isn't that just fanamatastic, Sherry?"

"It sure is, Philsky! The week of festivities culminates in the nail-biting bocce ball game pitting the X Middle School Lobbin' Lobsters against the Gilby Fighting Goats! Let's just hope the Lobsters don't 'bocce' this one up!"

"Well, here to help us find out is X Middle School's 'resident psychic', Alistair Greystone! Keep your eyes on this one, Sherry! He's gonna be big! So what's your prediction, Ali?"

"I foresee doom, dejection, and disappointment for the Lobsters! Friday's bocce ball game will be a horrible loss the likes of which this school's never seen!"

Sitting among the students watching the floats, Ed Nygma kept his ear out for the announcement. He rolled his eyes at the psychic's prediction.

"A psychic? Please. I read more accurate predictions from my fortune cookies."

Ed's eyes caught onto a large, red throne float which Principal Folsom sat on. The Safety Patrol walked along either side of the float. He waved to Ingrid to get her attention, and she stepped away to meet him.

"Suddenly glad I'm not a Safety Patrol officer if I had to do that." Ed said.

"Cute, but this is actually important." Ingrid said. "Every year, some Gilby punk tries to bring our morale down by pulling a prank on us, which might include doing something to Folsom."

"You mean like that guy is?" Ed asked pointing at the far end of the field.

Ingrid looked and gasped seeing a kid slip a goat mask on and pick up a pie. She ran toward him while picking up her radio.

"Fillmore, heads up!"

Fillmore saw the goat-masked kid toss his pie at Folsom. He tried to catch it, but he missed his mark. Thankfully, Ingrid made a last minute save by jumping in the pie's way getting hit with it instead of the principal.

"I am yellow on the outside, white on the inside, and very appealing. What am I?" Ed asked watching Fillmore and Ingrid take the pie into the HQ fridge.

"Banana, as in the banana-cream pie." Ingrid asked. "I know. I can't believe I took it for Folsom either."

"Next time, try to catch it in the shoulder." Fillmore said.

"Next time, try to catch it, period." Ingrid said.

"You're welcome, by the way." Ed said. "I mean, I did find that Gilby enthusiast for you."

"Yes, thank you, Ed." Fillmore said. "Now, if you excuse me, I'm heading home."

"What's the rush?" Ed asked.

"Family dinner." Ingrid said. "His parents have reservations to this crawdad dinner place downtown, and he's been so busy lately, it's nice for him to sit back and enjoy."

Ed chuckled. "Parents." He let slip a small frown, but raised it before anyone noticed. "Well, I'm gonna go get my stuff."

Ed headed over to his locker to find everything he'll need. Once he closed the door, he taped the crack on the locker as a safety security. He was all set to leave, until…

"AAAAHHHH!"

The scream startled Ed making him drop his stuff. He rushed to the sound of the scream and found a girl right next to an empty tank.

"What happened?" Ed asked.

"Our mascot! Lobstee!" the girl cried out. "He's… missing!"

Ed looked back at the empty cage. "Well, that can't be good."

Ed waited for the Safety Patrol to arrive, including Fillmore and Ingrid. The duo approached him with questions.

"What have we got?" Fillmore asked.

"Well, I was getting my stuff when suddenly, I heard someone screaming." Ed narrated. "I followed the scream and found Jeanie Keery, the girl who feeds Lobstee, over an empty tank. The mascot's gone."

"During Spirit Week? Dog." Fillmore expressed. "What was Jeanie doing?"

"She ran out to the bocce field after the pie attack, and when she came back, the lobster was gone." Ed continued. "But now, there's one question above all that needs answered."

"And what's that?" Ingrid asked.

"What's with those shorts?" Ed pointed at the bright-blue, elastic shorts with yellow linings that were worn by Fillmore.

"Oh. Right." Fillmore said. "I was about to go to a buffet with my folks when I got the phone call. Went straight ahead."

"Fillmore, Ingrid, Nygma, Folsom wants us in her office now." Vallejo said. "And Montoya, you come too."

"Me? Why?" Renee asked.

"Ask Folsom, not me." Vallejo replied.

"Guys, Lobstee is the pride and joy of X Middle School." Folsom said after the kids arrived at her office. "He makes us better than we are. With him we're… Uh…" She turned to her vice principal. "Raycliff, a metaphor."

"With him, we're cream of the crème brulee crop. Without him, we're low-grade tapioca."

"That's good." Folsom commented. "If word gets out that Lobstee's been kidnapped, school morale will plummet and the bocce team will lose against Gilby for the first time in… Raycliff!"

"A decade."

"A decade! And that's not gonna happen. Not on my 24-karat watch. You got that?"

"Mum's the word." Ingrid promised.

"Consider me broken when spoken." Ed said.

"Broken when… What?" Folsom asked.

"Silence, ma'am." Raycliff said. "Silence is broken when spoken."

"Smart man." Ed commented.

"So why'd you want to see me, ma'am?" Renee asked. "I'm not exactly the most decorated officer."

"Because while the others are looking for Lobstee on school grounds, I want you to check out Gilby." Folsom said. "We can only assume that this is our rival school trying to punk us after their pie attack failed."

"Gilby?" Renee asked. "Ma'am, I can't just go on Gilby school grounds. I have no jurisdiction there. I'll get thrown out."

"So at least start at the fairgrounds. If you get any word that Lobstee is on Gilby grounds, then you can investigate there under probable cause."

"We'll find Lobstee." Fillmore promised.

"I know you will, because you are the best. And on the off-chance you don't find him by Friday's bocce game, so help me, I'll melt down your badges, use them to steel-toe my boots, and kick your careers from here to… Raycliff!"

"Shanghai?"

"No."

"Burma?"

"Try again."

"Kazakhstan?"

"Yes. Kazakhstan."

The five kids immediately left the office with their principal's threat lingering in their minds.

"That was fun." Ingrid said. "Where do we start?"

"Well, I'm gonna go the fairgrounds to look at Gilby." Renee said. "You guys can check out any other suspects."

"You really think one of our own would intentionally sabotage us?" Vallejo asked.

"It really depends on the motive." Ed said.

Renee Montoya arrived at the fair during public hours. She looked around seeing most of the children getting on rides and playing games. She stayed close to the crowds to try and overhear their conversations, but nothing was what she was looking for.

But even though there was a case going on at the moment, Renee had other things on her mind. Just earlier that week, she found out that Hugo Strange, the new guidance counselor, was once a student of X Middle School even though he claimed he never came before he was hired. Seeing it that way caused several issues to linger on in her mind.

"Vic Sage always talked about a dark secret buried in X Middle School. Everyone else brushed it off, but it looks like he's somehow connected it to Strange. Could he really have something to do with the secret?"

She stopped thinking to herself when she noticed something. She stopped walking and turned her head slightly. That's when she noticed an unknown figure hiding behind the Test-Your-Strength game. She didn't see their face; only a trench coat with a fedora over their head. Whoever it was, they knew that Renee was watching them, so they turned around and ran. Renee chased after them.

The mysterious figure raced all the way to the cotton candy machine. They pushed it and jumped on it as it gained momentum riding it like a surfboard. However, Renee was a quick thinker. She made a detour up the nearest big slide and made it to the top where she then slid down on her feet. When she made it to the bottom, she jumped off and managed to tackle the mysterious figure knocking them off the cotton candy machine.

After catching the mysterious figure, Renee grabbed them by their coat collar and held them up. "Okay, buddy! I want answers!"

The figure's hat fell off revealing the person underneath it. It was a girl with short, blonde hair. "That makes two of us!" she replied.

"Why were you stalking me?" Renee asked.

"Would you believe that I liked your hairstyle?" the blonde girl asked.

"Don't change the subject." Renee said. "What kind of creep are you?"

The girl looked down at Renee's waist and noticed the badge attached to it. She sighed and answered. "From the looks of it, I'm the same kind you are."

Renee raised an eyebrow. "I beg your pardon?"

The girl freed herself and stood back up at her feet. She then reached in her pocket and showed off a similar looking police badge.

"Name's Maggie Sawyer. I'm from the Gilby Safety Patrol."

Renee widened her eyes. "Wait? You're Gilby Safety Patrol? What are you doing here?"

"Working a case." Maggie replied. "And when I saw a girl I've never met treading around the fair, not play any of the games, and eavesdropping on other people's business, I got suspicious."

Renee's confusion intensified. "You're working a case?"

"Yep. And since you came here with your badge, I'm guessing you did too." Maggie said. "I don't suppose you wanna compare notes?"

Renee turned her head slightly. "No can do. I can't talk about it."

Maggie stared silently before realizing something. She grabbed Renee's arm and pulled her away. They ended up in a secluded area in between game stands before Renee wrestled her arm free.

"What was that for?" Renee asked.

"I'm going to take a guess." Maggie said. "Did someone kidnap your school mascot?"

Renee widened her eyes in surprise. "What… How… Why… When…"

"Are you going to finish any of these questions?" Maggie asked. "Anyway, truth be told, I'm working a similar case. Someone goat-napped our mascot too."

"And you're just telling me this?" Renee asked.

"Well, I figured that if we have similar goals, we'd have a better chance if we worked together. So how about you help me find my mascot and I'll help you find yours." Maggie said. "I'll start you off with a hint. I know just about everyone at Gilby. The only one who would have the skills to steal a mascot has been serving detention after school for the past week. So I know no one in Gilby stole your lobster. That's enough to trust, right?"

"Not entirely." Renee said. "Look, even if I thought it was a good idea, I can't. Principal Folsom wants this case on the down-low. No one can know about it."

"Yeah. My principal wants the same thing." Maggie said. "Look, I've gotten nowhere with my investigation. I'm willing to do anything at this point, even work with my rival. So let's keep this little alliance on a deeper down-low. Deal?"

Maggie held out her hand waiting for a shake. Though she was hesitant, Renee decided it might be the best choice, so she shook it.

"All right. But how do I know you'll actually help me find Lobstee after we find your goat?"

"I could be asking you the same question, only in reverse?" Maggie chuckled. "Don't worry. Maggie Sawyer always keeps her word."

"Brock Mason Kicked Off Team"

That's the headline article for the X Middle School Examiner. As soon as they read that, Fillmore, Ingrid, and Ed headed to the boys locker room to confront the former player.

"Grudge? Why would I have a grudge?" Brock asked. "I'm glad coach booted me. My sorry play was bringing down th team in a bad way. Besides, I've since become a way better bocce ball washer. Anything I could do to to help us win against those lame Goats."

Just then, a pamphlet slipped out of Brock's open locker. It was a yellow book with an illustration of a pig wearing a football helmet. The title read "Caring for Your Stolen Mascot".

"That's suspicious." Ingrid said picking up the book.

"And weird." Ed added. "That's not only super convenient, it begs the question of why that book exists in the first place."

"Maybe we should continue this down at the station, Mason." Fillmore suggested.

"Yeah, or maybe… NOT!"

Brock grabbed a basket full of bocce balls and spilled them in front of the trio. They jumped over them and chased Brock across the locker room. They followed him over to the laundry room, but lost sight of him. Thankfully, Fillmore found his legs sticking out of a set of hanging clothes.

Ed reached his hand up and grabbed Brock by his ankle. He then pulled him down into a laundry basket.

"Okay. Did you really think that was going to work?" Ed asked. "No offense, but that was a pretty stupid decision."

"Looks like your clean getaway got a little dirty." Fillmore said.

Brock was forced to guide the trio to the bocce ball supply closet. Little did they know that someone else was already there already at the front of the door. It was Renee Montoya standing right next to Maggie Sawyer.

"Montoya? What are you doing here?" Fillmore asked. "And who's this?"

"Oh. She's… a consultant." Renee said.

"Hey. I thought I was the only consultant here." Ed said. "What does this girl have that I don't?"

"Well, she's a smart girl." Renee said. "We kinda did out own process of elimination to find the missing mascot here. As soon as we found out that Mason was kicked off the team, we figured he would have the best motive."

"Now for the moment of truth." Maggie said opening the door. But what was behind wasn't what anyone expected.

Among the bocce balls was a young goat with the Gilby ribbon over it.

"Wait. Mason, you stole the Gilby mascot?" Fillmore asked.

"Fillmore, ix-nay" Ingrid warned.

"Yeah. Who's mascot did you think?" Brock asked before realizing the truth. "Dude! They stole Lobstee, didn't they? DIDN'T THEY?!"

Before anyone else could say a word, Brock Mason ran outside. Once he made it to a large group of X Middle School students, he screamed from the top of his lungs for everyone to hear.

"SOMEBODY LOBSTER-NAPPED LOBSTEE! HE'S GONE! GONE!"

And just like that, all the students began to panic and run. Fillmore, Ed, Ingrid, Renee, and Maggie watched from afar with the goat behind them.

"Oh, crackers." Ingrid said.

"Guess today's a big day for stupid decisions." Ed commented.