Chapter 4

The kids made it to the park.

"I don't see her," said Michael.

"Well, what did she look like?" asked Ryan.

"She was hot but what does it matter?"

"Maybe we should call someone," said Robert.

"We're the people you call!" said Lucy.

"Oh, yeah…"

Michael then noticed… "Captain Stretchy!"

"Who?"

Michael raced over to Captain Stretchy. "You're still here?"

"Every Saturday and Sunday all day long," said Captain Stretchy, "Stay in school, kids."

"Listen, I was talking to a girl here earlier," Michael explained, "She said you worked a party for her brother."

"I work lots of parties."

"Well, where was the party where you sat on the cake?"

"You got 3 hours?"

"Look, this is very important," said Kelly, "Can you tell us where she is?"

"Interesting situation. You kids need info and I need a mirdle."

"A what?" asked Lucy.

"Oh, it's a man-girdle. And they ain't cheap."

Ryan looked over the guy's suit. "Yeah, neither is dry-cleaning, apparently."

"Well, did she come back to the park or what? Where is she?" asked Michael.

"Well, maybe she did…" Captain Stretchy started rubbing his fingers together. "…and maybe she didn't."

"Stop rubbing your fingers together and answer my question!"

"He wants a bribe!" Robert said.

Michael sighed and took out a 20.

"Here's what I know. Her name is Abby."

"I know that already!"

"Well, I didn't say the information was fresh. Yeah, I know the girl. She comes from a big family. At least 7 or 8 kids. For them, I've been Astronaut Pete, Cowboy Bob—"

"Magic Marx?" asked Benny.

"Yeah! You're familiar with my work?"

"Yeah. It stinks! I'm a mortal and I'm better than you." Nadine smacked him.

"It's not as easy as you think." Captain Stretchy gave him an not-yet-inflated balloon. "Here. Turn that into a schnauzer." Benny looked at it. "Can't do it, huh? Maybe it's because you don't have the guts!"

"So does she live nearby?" asked Kelly.

"Yeah, around here somewhere. I'd know the place if I saw it."

"Great! You help us out today and we'll get you into that mirdle tomorrow! Oh, wait, you do understand we're not actually gonna get you into it—that part you have to do yourself."

Captain Stretchy nodded. "Alright then. Captain Stretchy away!" He started off.

"Shuttle's this way!" Ryan said, walking off in the other direction.

"Oh." Captain Stretchy followed them.

In Fairy Tale Land…

Sarah looked around the path as she kept following the map. Suddenly, she stopped walking. "I'm in the 'Bog of Bunnies'? Well, this part should be easy." She then noticed a lop-eared rabbit jumping up to her. "Aw…" She knelt down to pet it then kept going. Suddenly, she fell into a mud pit. "What…" She looked at the map. "Oh! 'Bog and bunnies'. Well, that's different." Suddenly, she saw a crocodile coming up to her. "Hey, back off!" The croc bit the map. "Hey, give me that!" She got into a tug-o-war fight with it. Finally, she screamed it off and took the map back…torn in half. "Oh no…how am I supposed to find Jack now?" She then noticed something on the map…right by where it said Land of Lost, it said 'Castle of Mirrors' and 'Mountain of Sand' and she'd have to pass through both of them to get to where Jack was, not to mention that Warlock the gourd had mentioned. "Oh boy." She tossed the broken map aside and started swimming out of the bog.

In a Mexican restaurant…

Duck led the gang into the restaurant with a pig. "Come on, guys. Pinkster's cousin isn't evil. I'm sure of it this time."

"Well, I'm a little worried about this place," said Wendy.

"Don't worry, guys," said Pinkster's cousin, "It's all discount. This place is one of my t-to-t-to-t—best clients."

"Yeah, not what you wanna hear from an exterminator," said Lexi, sitting down.

Sophie then saw something at a nearby table. "Oh, would you look at that."

"Ooh, fajitas," Tech awed as a waiter passed by them.

Sophie smacked him. "Not that. The baby. The little baby in a stroller just like ours."

Gabby was in her stroller, sitting by Abby, at a table not that far away from where the gang was sitting.

"OK, honey, this is supposed to be a day away from the babies," Tech said, "So let's come back."

"Right, right, sorry," Sophie said, grabbing the menu. "I'm back. I'm back." 3…2… She put the menu down and got up. "Just gonna run to the ladies' room." She walked off. As she passed by the table Abby's family was sitting at, she looked at the baby…then she stopped and looked again.

Abby's family looked at her.

She smiled at them. "Hola." She giggled and then started to walk off. "Adios." She went back to the others. "Tech! Go look at that baby. I think it's Gabby!"

"What?" Tech asked, looking at the stroller over his shoulder.

"You heard me! That is Gabby!"

"Whoa, Sophie, would calm down?" asked Daniella, "And sit down."

"I will not! A mother knows her own baby and that is my baby!"

Tech stopped her. "Sophie, what do you think happened? While we were at the movies, someone walked up to the tower and asked the kids if they could borrow our baby and brought her out for chips and guac?"

Sophie glared at him. "I don't know! You know what? It's a big family, maybe that's how they get their babies!"

Tech sighed. "Listen. I think you've just been spending a little too much time with the babies. And now that you're away, you're having a little separation anxiety."

Sophie took a deep breath and calmed down. "You're right." She sat down. "Crazy!" She laughed. "Like that could actually happen!" She picked the menu back up. 3…2… She put it back down and started to get up again. "I'm gonna run to the ladies' room one more—"

"Sit down!" Tech commanded her.

Sophie complied.

A waiter then came up and whispered something in Pinkster's cousin's ear.

Pinkster's cousin (oh, for crying out loud, his name is Preston!) got up. "Uh, would you excuse me for a second?" Wendy dipped a chip in the guacamole and got ready to eat it. "I'm w-w-want-w-want-w—needed in the kitchen." Preston walked off.

Wendy stopped her chip halfway to her mouth, looked at it, and dumped it back in the bowl.