The Search for Snoink

Everyone started looking around for squirrels or rabbits, trying to gain levels. One by one, everyone started gaining more levels.

Besides Cat.

"Gah!" She sat down on the hard ground in frustration, arms crossed.

"Now, Cat." June came over and sat down next to Cat. "What's the matter?"

"I can't do any of this!" She wiped her eyes with her sleeve, trying to hold back the tears. She didn't want to cry in front of everyone.

"Yes you can," June said gently. “You just have to keep on trying.”

“Why, though?” Cat asked.

“To help find Snoink,” June said. “That’s why.”

Cat said nothing as she stared at the fairies dancing around in the trees, and hearing all the other girls squealing whenever they gained another letter; Grif, being a guy, said nothing.

“Come on,” June said, standing up and holding out her hand. Cat grabbed it and stood up. “Let’s go kick some butt.”

Cat giggled as they started their way back to the others.

“Haha! Yes!!” Dreamer laughed as she gained another level. “This is fun!”

Fifteen minutes later…

“Okay, is everyone good?” Grif asked. Everyone nodded. Cat had finally managed to go up a couple of levels to catch up with everyone else.

“Yep! We sure are!” Jabs said, waving the gun again, and then accidently shooting it, again.

“Jabber!” Grif yelled.

“Sorry,” she said, meekly. Everyone laughed at her as Cat got out her notebook and quickly wrote something down.

“Let’s go!” Grif said and they all started down the yellow brick road towards...somewhere?

"Hey, where are we going?" Cat asked.

*Cat

O_o

uoh...

She found us!

SCRAM!!!

As Jabber skipped down the yellow brick road, she hummed the song from the good ol' movie Wizard of Oz. Until she saw Snoink.

The Snoinkster waved to their group and called out to Griff. "Hey, Griff! Where've you been?"

"It's Snoink!" Evi said.

"Oh my gosh, we did it!" June squealed.

"No, we didn't," Griff said, readying his gun. "It's a clone!"

"A clone?" they repeated.

"Why is Snoink level two?" Jabber asked from behind Griff.

"'Cause she's a clone," Griff repeated. Snoink approached them with wide-open arms and a smile on her face. "We must perform alpha-mega-alpha-alpha-beta-alpha-mu."

"Why not just mu?" Heather suggested.

Griff stared at Heather. "Are you insane? That maneuver requires more skill, not a bunch of extras!"

"Hey!" Evi said. "We're not extras!"

"So you say," Griff replied. "Maybe you're clones."

"Maybe you're a clone," Jabber said.

"Maybe your face is a clone."

"Maybe your face's nose is a clone."

"Maybe your face is a clone."

Silence.

"Dang," Jabber said, scrunching up her face.

"Alpha-mega-alpha-alpha-beta-alpha-mu go!" Griff said, and the team spread out.

"Wait, guys! I wanna play!" Snoink begged.

It was too late. The team was already high up in the air, and the supposed clone of Snoink was only showing as a tiny dot on the green meadow.

Grif sighed - in relief, Demeter supposed.

"Are you sure we did the right thing?" Evi asked frantically.

"Yeah, Grif, what was that all about?" June demanded, frowning.

Grif looked out of the window and started whistling "Mary Had A Little Lamb".

Heather cleared her throat. "Um, Grif. These people are talking to you."

Grif turned around. "Did you say something, Heather?"

Jabber mouthed the word 'clone' and Grif sighed again.

"Look, kids, it was the perfectly right thing to do. She's not supposed to be out there. Something's not right."

"Your face is not right," Jabber muttered.

Silence descended among them.

"Oh, Nate!" Dreamer said.

"Don't use Nate's name in vain, Dreamer," Heather said. "What is it?"

"Yeah, what is it, Not Me?" Demeter asked.

Cat readied her notebook.

"I left my Tetris on the meadow!" Dreamer called.

"You mean my computer," Rosey said. She got ignored.

Demeter went pale. "And Snoink's down there!"

"Snoink's clone," Grif corrected. Heather and Jabber looked at each other.

"Way to go, Not Me. Now what will we do?"