Due to the fact that Carmen and Kevin had not yet arrived, many of the guests were currently
experiencing the typical phenomena knowm as ''the middle of the party where the heck is the guest of
honor'' slump. Kara was doing her best to avoid this and mingle with the other guests. She had
witnessed Carli's dramatic entrance, helped Lars and Moe look after Megan's present, had a
one-sided conversation with Seldavia about the plots of at least 17 different musicals, and received a
doughnut demerit from Jaci when she danced the hussle with the Chief. She was just about to get some
punch for Erin and Scott, who having just resumed their discussion of the Big Blue Hole decided they
needed refreshments, when she was approached by a worried Hannah Lulu who said, ''Kara, we've
got a bit of a situation.''
''What's wrong? Did Megan's present get loose?'' Kara asked.
''No, it's Sara....she's...,'' Hannah stuttered and wrung her hands.
''Sauced?'' Kara ventured. Hannah shook her head. ''Then what is it?''
''She's under the buffet table hiding from Meg. I tried to get her to come out, but she just yelled at me
in a language I couldn't understand and...''Hannah explained ash she lead Kara over to where Meg
was hiding. Al Loy and Dee Tritus were there, too, trying to get Sara to come out.
''Sara? What in the name of organized crime are you doing underneath that table?'' Kara asked she she
lifted up the tablecloth.
''It'sssss Meg! She's crazzzzy!'' Sara whispered.
''Look who's talking,'' Dee muttered to Al who supressed a chuckle.
''Sara, dear, now I know we've had our differences in the past, but you can not spend the entire day
hiding under that table! People eat of that table!'' Kara exclaimed. Just then Scott came over to see
what the commotion was all about. He was quite baffled at the sight of Sara crouched under the table.
Kara braced herself for the verbosity that was to come....
''Sara, your fears are irrational. Meg is quite harmless. You are making a fool of yourself here in
public.'' Scott spoke calmly.
''Yeah, and if ya don't move, we're gonna have to physically remove ya...'' Al began. Hannah gave him
a poke in the ribs and a dirty look for his comment.
''Oh, alll rrrrright. Fine! Whateverrr!'' Sara scowled as she got up.
''Great Sara. Now, Zack and Ivy will be back soon. Why don't you make some pleasant conversation
with them. Zack's got a new jacket....'' Kara suggested. Just then, a voice belonging to a teenage girl in
an emerald dress, screamed from across the room, ''Sara! Yoo-hoo!'' Sara took one look and bolted
for the door, knocking over several waiters carrying hors d'oeurves and a few people doing the electric
slide.
''Clean up aisle four,'' Scott said to Kara.
''Here we go again,'' Hannah sighed.
Meg threw back her head and laughed as she watched Sara run out of the room screaming something
in Italian.
''God, I love scaring her like that!''she choked out in between giggles.
Scott looked at her, ''You're cruel, Meg. Really cruel.''
Meg waved her hand at him and took a sip of her punch, ''I know. But it's just so much fun to see the
looks on her face. Heck, I'm probably the reason she went nuts!''
She laughed again, ''Well, I'd better go have a looksy at my present. It probably wants another kitty
treat.''
''Kitty treat?'' Kara asked.
''Oh yeah,''Meg said, ''I forgot to tell you. I went to a show cat breeder friend of mine and got Carmen
a prized black Egyptian Mau. It's really beautiful.''
Al Loy's eyes suddenly widened.
''Didn't Megan say somethin' about brinin' Carmen a bird?'' he asked Hanna Lulu.
''Yes,'' she said slowly.
They both took in what they'd just said and bolted up the stairs. Meg watched them as they tore out of
the room.
Kara turned to her, ''Aren't you afraid your Mau is going to eat that poor bird?''
Meg shook her head, ''Nah. She's very well behaved, and besides, it's in a cat carrier.''
* * *
''Care to join me?'' Carli was asking with a hint of mischief. Seldavia thought about that for a few
moments, watching first Sara Bellum run out of the room and then Hannna and Al. She wasn't sure;
there was enough mayhem going on already, and wondered if the house would still be standing when
Carmen finally arrived. Then again, Seldavia thought, the natives are restless. A little hysteria to ease
the wait might be just the thing everyone needed. Kara had already tried passing the time with her by
telling her about twenty-some musicals, which had been interesting since Seldavia loved a good theater
production, but she wondered if Kara had noticed that she had got lost somewhere in the middle of
'Miss Saigon'. Meg was tormenting Sara, Lio was exasperated, and Jaci was getting far too generous
with her demerits.
Seldavia grinned wickedly. ''Let's do it!''
''Well then, let's go!'' Carli tossed a can to Seldavia and placed one inside of her coat and started
toward the table where Lars and Moe were standing.
Lars glanced up to see the two of them approaching and whispered to his sidekick, ''Oh no, look
whose heading this way! Do you think she's still mad over what happened last year?'' Moe shook his
head,
''Nah, Carli's not like that. She even laughed when she found her Harley in the fountain!''
''Yeah, but remember? We were going to put it on the roof as a practical joke. It FELL into the
fountain!'' They both looked up to see Carli and Seldavia standing in front of them. One of the gift
wrapped boxes chirped and shook a moment before staying still. Seldavia gave the box an odd look,
and one to another box which mewed in response and quieted down. Carli set her gift on the table and
looked up at Lars with a Chestshire Cat grin, ''Why hello! Just the two people I was looking for! I
haven't seen you in ages! It's almost as if you were trying to avoid me!''
''Who, us? No, we're not avoiding you, it's just that, uh, we've been really busy and we forgot your
number, right, Moe?''
Moe looked up stunned and stuttered, ''A-ah, yeah, we forgot the number,''
Carli laughed and scoffed, ''Oh, really? Forgot? The numbers to my office, my cel phone and my
pager? ''
Moe smiled and pointed at Lars, ''Yeah! He forgot his keys and locked himself out the car this
afternoon...''
''You know, I also seemed to remember you two calling me up everytime you got caught and begging
me to bail you out. Oh, the old days! I have such a good memory when it comes to details. Like the
party last year...''
Lars eyes widened and he muttered, ''Uh-oh...'' Before Moe had a chance to realize what was
happening Lars had bolted. Carli leapt over the table by the time he had scurried off and was in full
pursuit. Seldavia shrugged her shoulders and sighed before deciding to follow.
It was as Lars and Moe had ran out of the room that everyone's head turned to the sound of a loud
crash. Carli and Seldavia caught up to see where the origin of the noise had come from and found
Moe, Lars and Sara lying on the floor. Apparently, the dim witted uo had ran right into the half crazed
professor, who was running to avoid a confrontation of her own. Carli burst out in laughter and wiped
a tear from her eye as Lars sat up. Moe regained consiousness just as Carli reached into her coat and
said, ''Never, ever mess with my motorcycle...'' They both screamed and covered their eyes as
Seldavia and Carli covered them in silly string.
Moe opened one eye and Seldavia grinned, ''Gotcha!'' Carli then added, ''Oh, and I wouldn't worry
about locking your keys in the car anymore Lars. I'd, umm, say that is the least of your automotive
troubles...''
Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, Meg was rolling on the floor with laughter.
Jaci came up and asked, ''What's up?''
When Scott told her what Meg had done to Sara and that Meg had gotten Carmen a pet Mau cat, Jaci
laughed.
''That's three doughnuts for scaring Sara out of her wits. Luckily I didn't give Carmen a pet Mau. I
gave her a book of all of Shakespeare's plays. I'm a bookworm and love all of Shakespeare's plays.''
Just then, the cel phone rang and Laurie picked it up.
''Hello?'' she asked.
''Hey, Laurie, Zack here.''
''Hey Zack, what's up?''
''We're all set- Ivy and I are all dressed up.'' There was a sudden pause. ''I feel weird,'' Zack added.
''Me in a suit is a weird thing...but Ivy in a dress-''
''Hey!'' Ivy's voice from the backround shouted.
Zack decided to continue on. ''Well anyway, we'll C-5 on over to the mueseum when you give the
signal.
''Will do,'' Laurie replied. ''Just let me call Kevin and I'll call you right back.''
''All right,'' Zack replied, ''Talk to ya in a minute.''
''Bye,'' Laurie said and hung up.
''So, they're ready?'' Scott asked.
''And not a moment too soon!'' Kara exclaimed. ''Mingling is fun, but-''
''I know, 'the natives are restless' so to speak,'' Laurie finished.
''Well, let's get the show on the road.'' She took the phone and dialed Kevin again.
Kevin answered, ''Hello?''
''Hey Kev, Zack and Ivy are ready to arrive,'' Laurie said.
''Hey cool,'' Kevin replied.
''Just make sure Carmen doesn't try to run off when they show up, ok?''
''Gotcha,'' Kevin replied. ''See ya.''
Laurie hung up the phone and immediately dialed Zack and Ivy back.
Zack answered, ''Hey, what's going on?''
''Ok, I told Kevin to try to make it so Carmen doesn't bolt when you arrive,'' Laurie replied.
''Cool, that'll make it easy for us,'' Zack replied.
''Ok, I'll have people dim the lights here. We'll yell 'surprise' once we see the C-5 corridor open up,''
Laurie said.
''All righty,'' Zack replied, ''See ya at the party!''
''See ya,'' Laurie replied as she hung up the phone.
''So,'' Kara began, ''What's the plan?''
''We're going to jump out and yell 'surprise!' once the C-5 opens up. Somebody's gotta make an
annoucement to get everyone to dim the lights and get into place,'' Laurie replied.
''Somebody grab the mic,'' Scott suggested with a smile, ''Then everyone will HAVE to listen to every
word you say.''
''This isn't 'The Wedding Singer,''' Laurie replied, ''But you got something there!''
Across the room, Erin was looking in the pockets of his jacket. Kara came up to him.
''Lose something?'' she asked.
''No,'' Erin replied, ''Just looking for something to close that hole with.''
''How about bricks and mortar?''
''Ha ha. Ah, here we are!'' Erin flicked his left wrist and an oversized remote control slid into his hand.
He grinned at Kara. ''Watch and learn, my dear.'' He pointed the remote at the hole in the wall and
pressed a button. Instantly the hole shrunk in size and winked out of existence, leaving the wall
undamaged.
Kara gawked. ''How did you do that?''
Erin grinned. ''No idea.''
''What?!''
''No clue whatsoever. That's the beauty of Weird Science, Kara. Any idiot can do it.''
''Well, it's still pretty im--'' She was cut off by a beeping noise emitting from Erin's watch.
''Damn.'' Erin said. He pressed a button on the side.
''Hello?...Kiyone? What's..? What? You've have GOT to be kidding me! No! No, don't do anything!
I'll be there in a minute...what?! Well tell Mihoshi to put the flamethrower down! If she leaves it alone,
it'll detatch itself...all right, I'm coming.' He sighed and turned to Kara.
''Problems?'' Kara asked. Erin nodded.
''My lab assistant's idiot friend was fooling around with one of my experiments. I've gotta go bail the
little nitwit out. Anyway, I needed to change.'' He gestured at the T-shirt and jeans he was wearing.
''Gotta get Carmen's gift, too. Give my regards to Carmen if she arrives before I get back, okay?''
''No problem.'' Kara said. Erin pointed the remote control at himself, pushed a button and vanished.
Meanwhile, Lio didn't know she'd been dozing until Sara's shrill screech of terror woke her up. She
opened up her eyes in time to see her colide with several appitizer-carrying waiters.
What time was it? She glanced at her watch and felt a jerk of irritation. Kevin was really late! No
wonder the noise in the room had grown so tense. Maybe she should try and talk to someone to keep
awake....
She refilled her punch glass and wandered over to where the rest of the forum members were
grouping.
''.... a book of all of Shakespeare's plays. I'm a bookworm and love all of Shakespeare's plays,'' Jaci
was finishing up.
''I wish I could have thought of that!' Lio commented.
'Oh? What did you get her?'' Jaci asked.
''Just a box set of relaxation tapes. I tried getting something else...but the US government got a little
jumpy with me 'borrowing' a national monument. Hey..what was with Sarah running out of here like her
lab coat was on fire?''
''Well Meg's been teasing her all night and basicly she couldn't take it any more,'' Scott explained.
''Too bad you're not giving out Doughnut demerits Jaci,'' Lio joked.
'Actually while you were sleeping I couldn't hold back any longer!' Jaci explained 'Most people around
here have lost their doughnut rations for months' ''Man, I'm glad I've been asleep then!...Say, did Carli
ever show up?''
''I think so...but she and Seldvia disapeared a little while ago,'' Jaci said.
''If those two are conspiring together...then we're probably in for something messy.....Hey, Kara! Does
that band of yours know any 'Little Shop of Horrors' songs?''
After seeing Erin channel surf his way out of their dimension, Kara felt quite flustered. That coupled
with the fact that Kevin wasn't here yet gave her the oddest headache. Laurie had just said something
about somebody making a public service announcement.
''Does that band of yours know any 'Little Shop of Horrors' songs?'' Lio's words awoke Kara from
her daydream.
''Of course Lio. I'd have them strike up ''Skid Row'' for you right now, but somebody's got to make an
announcement. Laurie just talked to Zack and Ivy and I guess it's time for us to do the hiding thing. I'll
have them play it later.'' Kara said.
''All righty then, I'll sing along,'' said Lio.
''Here's the mic,'' Laurie said as she tossed Kara the microphone, ''you know how I hate making
announcements.''
Kara grabbed the mic and took the stage. ''Testing...1..2..3..'' she tapped on it to make sure it was
working. Sure enough, a shrill screech of feedback sounded and left a room full of crooks and guests
staring at her silently. ''Good evening folks. Your attention please, thank you. Ok., everybody here,'
Kara scanned the room. Carli and Seldavia had covered a few nameless henchmen with silly string.
The Chief was beaming brightly as Dee Tritus and Hannah Lulu forced a frazzled Sara Bellum down in
a chair. *I wonder what brand of elephant tranquilizer they used on her* Kara thought. ''That's good.
The guest of honor will be arriving momentarily....''
''What's dat mean?'' Moe Skeeter interrupted.
''Soon, Moe, soon,'' Kara finished as Laurie shot her a look of pity.
''So, when the C-5 portal opens up, we're all going to jump out of our hiding places and yell,
''Surprise!'' Then the band is going to play ''Happy Birthday'' in the right key this time and we'll get the
rest of this bash in full swing. Pretty simple, huh? Any questions..?'' Moe struggled to ask another
stupid question, but Lars clamped a hand over his mouth. ''Very well. Go and hide now,'' Kara
watched in amazement as everyone bumbled, bumped, and botched their way into hiding.
''Not the shiniest pennies in the fountain are they?'' Lio asked.
''Carmen Sandiego they are not, Lio'' Laurie answered. ''Scott, why don't you get the lights?'' Scott
walked over and dimmed the chandiliers. Immediately the room was plunged into total darkness. Cries
of ''that was my foot you idiot!'', ''you'rrre stepping on my lappp!'' and ''this is my hiding spot,
geekwad!'' could be heard.
Kara took her hiding spot behind the piano and waited for Carmen & Company to make their
entrance.
Jaci ran quickly to take her own hiding spot behind the piano. As she did so, she bumped into
someone.
It was a slight bump, but it caused somebody to say, ''Ouch! Would you please be more careful?''
''Sorry, Kara,'' Jaci whispered. ''I'll try to be more careful. I hope Kevin doesn't take too long bringing
Carmen here.''
''I hope not, either,'' Kara agreed.
Together they waited for Carmen and Kevin to make their entrance.
Jessica walked in turned on the light and said to her self I must have come to late. Everone jumped out
yelling suprise! Jessica jumped her heart was beating fast. ''Oh Jessica it is you,'' she could hear we
thought you wern't coming.
She had finally got her breath back and said you scared the air right out of me, ''I'm sorry I was late.''
Kara walked up laughing saying well I gusses your not Carmen but it was bretty funny watching you
jump like that. After everone got finished laughing about what happend. Kara finally said, ''Let's get
back to hiding.''
So everone went to there hiding places while Kara turned offed the lights. Now everyone was waiting
sillently for Carmen again.
* * *
Back in Boston...
''Where have you been?!,'' Kevin cried, running around the corner into the Greek bust exhibit. ''I've
been looking all over for you!''
''Were't you supposed to look for me in the Egyptian gallery?'', Carmen replied with a wry smile.
''What good would that have done me? You're here looking at a bust of Alexander! Which, I might
add from the mound of dust around your feet, you have been admiring for quite a while.'' Kevin smiled
back, leaning over to catch his breath.
''What on earth is the rush? I've been studying the amazing detail in this particular version of the bust.
It's interesting. The plaque says that it is a Roman copy done in 300 A.D., but it can't be. The detailing
of the hair, the expressiveness of the eyes, is far too ethereal for that. I've seen the original-''
''STOLEN the original'', Kevin interjected.
''Yes, of course.'' She laughed and stepped back from the bust. ''The original, done in Greece around
50 B.C., more closely follows the pattern of the master sculptor's -- the hair itself is so detailed that
each individual curl, and each strand in the curl, can be seen. And it is so smooth! But in Rome, the art
was lost. Sculptor's used 'stock patterns' for hair and the like, and the inspiration of each piece fell prey
to the monetary gain to be made from the commission. This bust, though-'' Carmen paused and stared
deeply at the bust again. ''Just from the hair, I know this is from a much ealier period, possibly 50 A.D.
And it is certainly not Roman. I'll bet this is from a Greco-Roman state such as Corinth or Ephesus.
There is no way that detail of this perfection came from Rome itself, and certainly not in 300 A.D.''
Kevin stood there, with his mouth open. Standing in her presence always did this to him, but he hadn't
had the opportunity to have such deep discussions with her in quite a long time. ''I am just-'' He closed
his mouth and thought hard about what he wanted to say, which would go something like 'Wow!
You're amazing! You should be writing treatises and complex theses and winning prestigious awards!'
But all he said was, ''Deep.'' At which point he poked her kiddingly in the side, and turned away.
''Stop it!'', she cried. Few knew that she was ticklish, and even fewer dared to take the liberty of
actually tickling her, but even in the stuffy, claustrophobic air of the museum, Kevin felt an affinity
around her that he couldn't describe. Standing there, in front of the bust of Alexander, she was still
Carmen, the greatest philosopher-thief the world had ever known. But, laughing like she just had, she
was something that the media, the law enforcement agencies, would never grasp: she was completely,
entirely human.
And she was enjoying her humanity.
''Oh God!'', Kevin gasped, pulling himself from his revery. Pondering on this touching moment brought
the reality of this excursion crashing down on him -- BIRTHDAY PARTY! Kevin scrambled for the
cel phone in his pocket.
''Hello'', said a slightly irritated voice on the other end. It was Laurie, and Kevin could hear the voices
of the other waiting party-goers around her.
''Uh, I'm like sorry and stuff. I kind of got carried away. Is everyone still there?''
''Well, if you discount the fact that Lio fell asleep, and there are two moving presents- then everything
is fine. Absolutely fine. Were you ever planning on showing up with the exalted guest, or were going to
keep her for yourself?''
''Well, you know I wouldn't mind that.'' He chuckled and looked over at the bust. Carmen had moved
again and he hadn't noticed! ''It's just that I have this problem, namely, a moving birthday girl! She
keeps disappearing on me!''
''It's her gift, Kev.'' Laurie chuckled. ''Zack and Ivy were supposed to be there. Didn't they come yet?''
''No, not yet. I know, you said they were coming last time you called, but they're not here. Maybe
something is wrong with the C-5?''
''Not likely. Who knows? Just go find her and get here as soon as you can. The natives are restless!''
''Gotcha Laurie. And by the way, good luck on your studying.''
''Oh yeah!'', said Laurie, remembering. ''I'll study REAL hard. And you LOOK real hard. K?''
''K''. He clicked off and stepped around the corner, when suddenly, a bright flash blinded him and
threw him across the floor.
''What the??'' Kevin stood up, mumbling. ''What was that?''
In front of him, Zack and Ivy stepped out of the circle of light. ''Cool dude'', said Zack, dressed
suavely in a starched black tux. ''Told you I'd get it to work!''
''You said it was nothing and would take 5 minutes! It's been almost 2 hours Zack, and these heels are
killing me!'', cried Ivy, standing behind him. ''I don't even know why I have them on. I should have
worn my regular clothes, they're much more comfortable.''
''Come on, Ive. Chill out, it's for Carmen.''
''Hey guys, glad you're finally here!'', called Kevin from a few feet away. They looked up and finally
saw him, wiping some dust from his pants.
''What took you so long?''
''The C-5 was acting up'', said Zack. ''Sorry, but it took longer to fix than I thought. You see, some of
the cables in the mainframe were freyed and had to be replaced-''
''So, even all this technology is fallible, eh?'', quipped Kevin.
''Yeah, but I fixed it and we're here! That's what counts.''
''So where's Carmen?'', inquired Ivy.
''Oh, yeah, that's right. She was just here, gazing at that bust of Alexander, then suddenly she left again.
I swear, she's worse than me in a mall. She can't stay in one place!''
''Maybe she's used to being on the run?,'' said Ivy with a smirk.
''Yeah, sure. Anyway, I'm going to go find her. You guys wait outside. We don't need anymore bright
flashes going off in here. I'll find her, explain why you're here -- and why you're so spiffy looking -- and
then we'll be on our way. Meet me at the north entrance?''
''Can do'', said Zack, and he and Ivy strode off down the corrider. (Ivy nearly tripped in her heels, but
that's beside the point.....)
Carmen entered the Egyptian gallery. She knew she had wandered away from Kevin, but to get back
at him for that little jab in the ribs, she was going to wait here for him. After all, if they were to be
separated, they were supposed to meet here. She wondered how long he would wander about the
muesum looking for her or if this time, he'd just look here.
About ten minutes later, Kevin walked into Egypt exhibit. He saw Carmen there with her hands on her
hips looking at him as if to say, 'took you long enough.'
''May I ask, just how hard is it to find the Egypt room?'' Carmen asked Kevin.
''Sorry, I happened to be looking more at the exhibits back there. I didn't notice you took off right
away,'' Kevin explained.
''Well, at least you did come here first,'' Carmen replied with a smile.
* * *
Meanwhile, back at the party, the assembled guests and party animals waited impaitently in the dark.
''What's taking him so long?'' Seldavia asked. ''I don't know.'' Laurie answered. ''But to be honest,
Kevin isn't known for always being punctual.''
''Hey, Laurie,' Jaci asked. ''What's he doing? Taking her to Las Vegas to get hitched or something?'
''Steph would kill him,'' Laurie answered.
''Steph?'' Jaci asked.
''Yes, Steph is his near fiancee,'' Laurie explained.
''Oh...'' Jaci replied. Suddenly, the guests became aware of a faint electric sound. Everyone got ready,
thinking it was the C-5.
This proved not to be the case. There was a flash of light ant two human forms materialized in the
room...about twenty feet above the floor.
The two forms immediately fell to the floor, one crashing into the piano.
''Somebody get the lights!'' Laurie called. The switch was flipped and the crowd gathered around the
newcomers.
The one who fell into the piano was Erin, now dressed in black pants, a white dinner jacket and a
collarless tux shirt with a large black circle in place of a tie. The other was a woman in her early
twenties dressed in a light silk gown. She had waist length blue-green hair and she wore an orange
headband. Both were wearing expressions of extreme pain.
''Erin?'' Laurie asked. ''Are you all right?''
''Uhhhh...Kiyone?'' Erin groaned.
''Yes?'' the aquamarine haired woman answered.
'' Remind me to NEVER use Washuu's Time/Space Cause and Effect Controller ever again!''
The psuedoscientist climbed out of the remains of the Steinway and helped Kiyone to her feet.
''Sorry, about that folks.'' Erin said.
''You realize that Carmen won't be happy about the piano.'' Kara said. ''That was a priceless
Steinway.''
Erin looked back at the mangled instrument. ''Not anymore.'' he answered. Kiyone tapped him on the
shoulder.
''Ahem.'' she said. Erin blinked.
''Oh, right. Everyone, this is Kiyone Makibi. Kiyone, this is...everyone. You'll meet them later.''
''Right.'' Laurie said. ''Back to your places everyone! Kill the lights.'' In the back of the room, a third
rate henchman named Rick O'Shea shot out the bulbs in one of the chandeliers.
''I meant turn them off.'' Laurie said quietly.
''I hate all this sitting around in the dark,'' Seldavia muttered. She turned in the direction of where she'd
last heard Jaci's voice.
''What's all this about getting hitched in Las Vegas?''
''It was a joke, Seldavia,'' Jaci whispered back.
''It had better be,'' Seldavia muttered darkly. ''If I find out otherwise I'm going to have to have a little
talk with him. I'm getting tired of my friends getting stolen from me and married off.''
''I don't think you have anything to worry about, Seldavia,'' Jaci told her. ''Carmen's not the type to get
tied down.''
''Not only that,'' Laurie explained, ''As I told Jaci, Kevin has a special someone. Her name is Steph.
Besides, even if he didn't have a nice near fiancee like her, Kevin couldn't marry Carmen- she's his
mentor, not his love interest!''
''Even so,'' Seldavia said, ''I want to know what they've been doing all this time.''
''Seldavia,'' Jaci asked suddenly, ''Weren't you going to bring a certain someone with you?''
''Yes, I know, I know,'' Seldavia whispered impatiently. ''It'll have to wait till Carmen gets back. See,
he insisted on wearing full regalia, the old-fashioned men's kimono and all that, and that sort of thing
can't be put on in a few minutes.''
''But he is coming, right?''
Seldavia nodded.
''Well, we'll find out what Kevin's been up to soon enough,'' Jaci replied. ''Maybe I shouldn't have
made that joke. I might have lost a doughnut or two with it.''
''You? Lost a doughnut? That I've got to see!'' whispered Seldavia.
''Maybe we'd just better remain quiet and wait,' Jaci replied. 'I know I will.''
So Jaci stopped talking and just waited for Carmen and Kevin to show up. She wondered where they
were.
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geocities.com/empressleonine5)