three keys.”
Molly unlocked the box and announced, “Four marbles and four keys.”
“Keys? Marbles?” Baloo cried, sharing a look with Kit. “What kinda cockamamie treasure hunt is this?”
“You tell me. You’re the expert treasure hunter,” Rebecca said grumpily. She crossed her arms and leaned against the pilot’s seat.
“So where we headed next, boss lady?”
“You mean...?” Rebecca exclaimed, both astonished and relieved.
“Hey, don’t wanna miss out on our chance to get our hands on some loot, huh, Kit?” Baloo winked at the boy over Molly’s head.
“Nope.” Kit grinned.
“Tell ya what. We’ll take you gals to Tundra City as long as you agree to split the treasure fifty-fifty.”
“Fifty-fifty?” Rebecca protested hotly. “Wait a minute! I...”
“Fifty-fifty,” Baloo said firmly, offering his hand to shake. “Or we’ll deliver the electric blankets, but pull the plug on the treasure huntin’.”
“I guess I’ll take it.” Rebecca reluctantly shook hands with him.
Baloo gave her a friendly grin before focusing on the sky ahead of them. “Just wish ya woulda told me before about the treasure earlier, Becky. I hate missin’ out on all the fun.”
Recalling their near-brush with death in Lhasa Apso, Rebecca said dryly, “Yeah, fun.”
Five Hours Later
Tundra City
The four bears, clad in parkas, found themselves trekking towards a gigantic frozen waterfall in a vast frozen wasteland. A bitterly cold wind blew specks of icy snow into their faces. Though the sun gave no warmth, it turned the blanket of snow into a sea of bright crystals, too bright to look upon.
“Who would be crazy enough to hide a treasure here?” Baloo shouted over the roar of the wind.
“What?” Rebecca shouted back, hugging her shivering daughter closer to her.
Baloo cupped his hands to his mouth and reiterated, “Who would be crazy enough to hide a treasure here?”
“It’s not crazy! No one would think of looking for treasure here!” Kit yelled, struggling to walk against the driving wind.
“What?” Rebecca and Molly shouted simultaneously.
To their immense relief, they had finally reached the waterfall and, therefore, shelter from the bone-chilling, wearying wind.
In a normal voice, Kit said, “I said that it’s a good place to hide a treasure, because no one would think of looking here. But where is it?”
They huddled close to each other as Rebecca consulted the sketchbook. “According to this, the treasure is halfway up this waterfall, but how are we supposed to get up there?”
All of them turned their eyes to the waterfall, which looked like a pale blue flame glistening in the sunlight. Taller than Khan Towers, it had been suspended in time for eons. A veritable fortress of ice.
“Climb?” Kit said with a shrug.
Rebecca groaned. “Not more climbing.”
“What do you think, Papa Bear?”
“We’ve got some rope an’ climbing tools in the Duck, but I vote we rest a spell before goin’ back out in that wind.” When he leaned against the waterfall, he fell backwards through a door-sized rectangle carved into the ice. “Whoa!”
“Baloo, are you all right?” Kit asked, holding out his hand to help him up.
“Just dandy, Li’l Britches,” the big bear said, slowly getting to his feet. He rubbed his sore backside. “But my landin’ gear might never be the same.”
Kit flicked on his flashlight and stepped through the door. What he saw made him say: “Wow!”
“Double wow!” Molly breathed while Rebecca said, “Oh, my!”
By the beam of the flashlight, they could see that a circular staircase had been carved out of the inside of the waterfall. Not only did it go up, up, up as far as the eye could see, but the ice crystals that it was made out of shone with every color of the rainbow.
Baloo gave a low whistle. “One wrong slip on that staircase an’ it’s see ya next fall.”
“If someone went to all this trouble, this must be some jewel!” Kit observed.
Baloo nodded. “You took the words right out of my mouth, kiddo. Ladies first?”
At the Top of the Staircase
After a long climb, the four
bears, cold, tired, yet still excited over the prospect of treasure, finally reached their destination. At the top of the staircase was an elaborate shelf carved out of ice, complete with dainty scrolls and curlicues. Sitting prominently on that shelf was a large wooden treasure chest bound with brass.
Rebecca, her pulse beating in her fingertips, said, “This has to be it!”
“Open ‘er up, Becky, an’ let’s see that jewel,” Baloo said.
“Yeah, hurry, Mom,” Molly added, clinging so tightly to Kit’s hand that the boy winced.
Holding her breath, Rebecca put the key that they had found in Lhasa Apso into the brass lock and turned it with difficulty. She eagerly flung the lid open. “It’s....it’s...”
End of part 2
Baloo’s Clues
Part 3
TaleSpin and its characters are property of Disney / Buena Vista Co. and are used without permission. All other characters are mine and cannot used without permission.
Tundra City
Top of the Staircase Inside Waterfall
Holding her breath, Rebecca put the key that they had found in Lhasa Apso into the brass lock and turned it with difficulty. She eagerly flung the lid open. “It’s....it’s...”
“Yeah? Yeah?” Baloo, Kit, and Molly said in unison.
Rebecca couldn't believe her eyes. She whispered incredulously, “A key, a marble, and a piece of paper?”
“No jewel?” Molly said, her excited expectation turning to disappointment.
Frowning, Kit scooped up the contents of the chest. He rolled the yellow and black marble around in his palm. “If this is someone’s idea of a practical joke, it’s not very funny.”
“The treasure has to be in here!” An extremely frustrated Rebecca ripped the lining out of the treasure chest, then shook it upside-down.
“Becky...” Baloo placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
Shrugging him off, Rebecca snapped, “If you even think, ‘I told you so’, you’re fired!”
“I wasn’t gonna...”
Rebecca sat down on the top step, the empty treasure chest in her hands. Hot tears pricked her eyes. “I can’t believe we came all this way for a marble, a key, and a lousy piece of paper.” She plunked the treasure chest down so hard that the bottom splintered.
Molly sat on the step beside her mother and tried to comfort her by putting her little arms around her.
Kit read the number that was printed on the piece of paper. “What picture was number six?”
“There wasn’t any page six,” Rebecca said with a sniff. “See for yourself.” She removed the sketchbook from her purse and handed it to Kit.
Baloo peered over Kit’s shoulder as the boy flipped through the old sketchbook. “Don’t look like any pages were torn out, neither.”
Rebecca buried her face in her hands. “I must be the most stupid, imbecilic...”
Jokingly, Baloo said, “Ya left out moronic.”
Dolefully, Rebecca continued, “Moronic person in the world for believing that that sketchbook would lead me to treasure.”
In an attempt to console his boss, Kit said, “Look on the bright side, Miz Cunningham. You had some excitement and adventure in some exotic places today.”
“And we found some nice marbles,” Molly added. “It’s better to find marbles than to lose them. Wildcat loses his all the time.”
Rebecca chuckled wanly. “That, I believe.” She wiped the half-frozen tears from her face and stood up, holding out her hand to Molly. “Come on. Let’s get out of this icebox and go home.”
Sea Duck
On the Way Back to Cape Suzette
As the orange-trimmed yellow seaplane soared over an ocean dotted with icebergs, Rebecca leaned against the pilot’s seat and leafed through the sketchbook. Finally, she closed it with a loud sigh that made Kit glance up from his map and prompted Molly to tear her attention away from the marbles.
Even Baloo looked over at her. Noticing her dejected demeanor, he asked gently, “What’s wrong?”
“I can’t believe that I fell for a crazy treasure hunt,” she said, her voice full of compunction.
“It wasn’t so crazy.” The big bear reached around behind his seat and pulled two bottles of lemonade out of a crate. He offered one to her.
Rebecca declined it with a shake of her head. “I have an MBA. I should have known better. For one day, I was as foolish as you, Baloo.”
“Only one day?” Baloo flipped the caps off of the lemonade with a practiced flick of his thumb and gave them to the cubs. He then got a third bottle of lemonade for himself, opened it, took a swig, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Angered by her insulting remark, he continued, “Let’s see...I remember an exploding gas station, sniffin’ out truffles with an overgrown porker, that featherbrained scheme about ostrich feathers, an’ ya can’t forget...”
Rebecca, who was in no mood to listen to a list of her past mistakes, whacked Baloo with the sketchbook, causing lemonade to spill on it. “Baloo! Look what you’ve done!”
“Me?” Baloo cried. “You’re the one that hit me, lady! It’s bad enough ya got my shirt soaked, but to waste perfectly good lemonade...” He looked sadly at his nearly empty bottle.
Her eyes flashing dangerously, Rebecca retorted, “Well, I wouldn’t have hit you if you hadn’t...”
Their argument was curtailed by Molly exclaiming, “Look! On the back of the book!”
Rebecca flipped the sketchbook over. Faint shapes were emerging where the lemonade had streaked it. She grabbed Baloo’s bottle from him just as he was about to take another drink, prompting an annoyed, “Hey!” from him and started dabbing more lemonade on the back cover. Little by little, a picture emerged.
Molly leaned over the armrest to get a better look. “I think I see some writing down near the bottom, but I can’t tell what it says.”
Rebecca dribbled more lemonade over the letters. When they became clear, she read, “Shakenquake Island?”
Both Baloo and Kit jumped as if they had been stung by a bee.
Molly unlocked the box and announced, “Four marbles and four keys.”
“Keys? Marbles?” Baloo cried, sharing a look with Kit. “What kinda cockamamie treasure hunt is this?”
“You tell me. You’re the expert treasure hunter,” Rebecca said grumpily. She crossed her arms and leaned against the pilot’s seat.
“So where we headed next, boss lady?”
“You mean...?” Rebecca exclaimed, both astonished and relieved.
“Hey, don’t wanna miss out on our chance to get our hands on some loot, huh, Kit?” Baloo winked at the boy over Molly’s head.
“Nope.” Kit grinned.
“Tell ya what. We’ll take you gals to Tundra City as long as you agree to split the treasure fifty-fifty.”
“Fifty-fifty?” Rebecca protested hotly. “Wait a minute! I...”
“Fifty-fifty,” Baloo said firmly, offering his hand to shake. “Or we’ll deliver the electric blankets, but pull the plug on the treasure huntin’.”
“I guess I’ll take it.” Rebecca reluctantly shook hands with him.
Baloo gave her a friendly grin before focusing on the sky ahead of them. “Just wish ya woulda told me before about the treasure earlier, Becky. I hate missin’ out on all the fun.”
Recalling their near-brush with death in Lhasa Apso, Rebecca said dryly, “Yeah, fun.”
Five Hours Later
Tundra City
The four bears, clad in parkas, found themselves trekking towards a gigantic frozen waterfall in a vast frozen wasteland. A bitterly cold wind blew specks of icy snow into their faces. Though the sun gave no warmth, it turned the blanket of snow into a sea of bright crystals, too bright to look upon.
“Who would be crazy enough to hide a treasure here?” Baloo shouted over the roar of the wind.
“What?” Rebecca shouted back, hugging her shivering daughter closer to her.
Baloo cupped his hands to his mouth and reiterated, “Who would be crazy enough to hide a treasure here?”
“It’s not crazy! No one would think of looking for treasure here!” Kit yelled, struggling to walk against the driving wind.
“What?” Rebecca and Molly shouted simultaneously.
To their immense relief, they had finally reached the waterfall and, therefore, shelter from the bone-chilling, wearying wind.
In a normal voice, Kit said, “I said that it’s a good place to hide a treasure, because no one would think of looking here. But where is it?”
They huddled close to each other as Rebecca consulted the sketchbook. “According to this, the treasure is halfway up this waterfall, but how are we supposed to get up there?”
All of them turned their eyes to the waterfall, which looked like a pale blue flame glistening in the sunlight. Taller than Khan Towers, it had been suspended in time for eons. A veritable fortress of ice.
“Climb?” Kit said with a shrug.
Rebecca groaned. “Not more climbing.”
“What do you think, Papa Bear?”
“We’ve got some rope an’ climbing tools in the Duck, but I vote we rest a spell before goin’ back out in that wind.” When he leaned against the waterfall, he fell backwards through a door-sized rectangle carved into the ice. “Whoa!”
“Baloo, are you all right?” Kit asked, holding out his hand to help him up.
“Just dandy, Li’l Britches,” the big bear said, slowly getting to his feet. He rubbed his sore backside. “But my landin’ gear might never be the same.”
Kit flicked on his flashlight and stepped through the door. What he saw made him say: “Wow!”
“Double wow!” Molly breathed while Rebecca said, “Oh, my!”
By the beam of the flashlight, they could see that a circular staircase had been carved out of the inside of the waterfall. Not only did it go up, up, up as far as the eye could see, but the ice crystals that it was made out of shone with every color of the rainbow.
Baloo gave a low whistle. “One wrong slip on that staircase an’ it’s see ya next fall.”
“If someone went to all this trouble, this must be some jewel!” Kit observed.
Baloo nodded. “You took the words right out of my mouth, kiddo. Ladies first?”
At the Top of the Staircase
After a long climb, the four
bears, cold, tired, yet still excited over the prospect of treasure, finally reached their destination. At the top of the staircase was an elaborate shelf carved out of ice, complete with dainty scrolls and curlicues. Sitting prominently on that shelf was a large wooden treasure chest bound with brass.Rebecca, her pulse beating in her fingertips, said, “This has to be it!”
“Open ‘er up, Becky, an’ let’s see that jewel,” Baloo said.
“Yeah, hurry, Mom,” Molly added, clinging so tightly to Kit’s hand that the boy winced.
Holding her breath, Rebecca put the key that they had found in Lhasa Apso into the brass lock and turned it with difficulty. She eagerly flung the lid open. “It’s....it’s...”
End of part 2
Baloo’s Clues
Part 3
TaleSpin and its characters are property of Disney / Buena Vista Co. and are used without permission. All other characters are mine and cannot used without permission.
Tundra City
Top of the Staircase Inside Waterfall
Holding her breath, Rebecca put the key that they had found in Lhasa Apso into the brass lock and turned it with difficulty. She eagerly flung the lid open. “It’s....it’s...”
“Yeah? Yeah?” Baloo, Kit, and Molly said in unison.
Rebecca couldn't believe her eyes. She whispered incredulously, “A key, a marble, and a piece of paper?”
“No jewel?” Molly said, her excited expectation turning to disappointment.
Frowning, Kit scooped up the contents of the chest. He rolled the yellow and black marble around in his palm. “If this is someone’s idea of a practical joke, it’s not very funny.”
“The treasure has to be in here!” An extremely frustrated Rebecca ripped the lining out of the treasure chest, then shook it upside-down.
“Becky...” Baloo placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
Shrugging him off, Rebecca snapped, “If you even think, ‘I told you so’, you’re fired!”
“I wasn’t gonna...”
Rebecca sat down on the top step, the empty treasure chest in her hands. Hot tears pricked her eyes. “I can’t believe we came all this way for a marble, a key, and a lousy piece of paper.” She plunked the treasure chest down so hard that the bottom splintered.
Molly sat on the step beside her mother and tried to comfort her by putting her little arms around her.
Kit read the number that was printed on the piece of paper. “What picture was number six?”
“There wasn’t any page six,” Rebecca said with a sniff. “See for yourself.” She removed the sketchbook from her purse and handed it to Kit.
Baloo peered over Kit’s shoulder as the boy flipped through the old sketchbook. “Don’t look like any pages were torn out, neither.”
Rebecca buried her face in her hands. “I must be the most stupid, imbecilic...”
Jokingly, Baloo said, “Ya left out moronic.”
Dolefully, Rebecca continued, “Moronic person in the world for believing that that sketchbook would lead me to treasure.”
In an attempt to console his boss, Kit said, “Look on the bright side, Miz Cunningham. You had some excitement and adventure in some exotic places today.”
“And we found some nice marbles,” Molly added. “It’s better to find marbles than to lose them. Wildcat loses his all the time.”
Rebecca chuckled wanly. “That, I believe.” She wiped the half-frozen tears from her face and stood up, holding out her hand to Molly. “Come on. Let’s get out of this icebox and go home.”
Sea Duck
On the Way Back to Cape Suzette
As the orange-trimmed yellow seaplane soared over an ocean dotted with icebergs, Rebecca leaned against the pilot’s seat and leafed through the sketchbook. Finally, she closed it with a loud sigh that made Kit glance up from his map and prompted Molly to tear her attention away from the marbles.
Even Baloo looked over at her. Noticing her dejected demeanor, he asked gently, “What’s wrong?”
“I can’t believe that I fell for a crazy treasure hunt,” she said, her voice full of compunction.
“It wasn’t so crazy.” The big bear reached around behind his seat and pulled two bottles of lemonade out of a crate. He offered one to her.
Rebecca declined it with a shake of her head. “I have an MBA. I should have known better. For one day, I was as foolish as you, Baloo.”
“Only one day?” Baloo flipped the caps off of the lemonade with a practiced flick of his thumb and gave them to the cubs. He then got a third bottle of lemonade for himself, opened it, took a swig, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Angered by her insulting remark, he continued, “Let’s see...I remember an exploding gas station, sniffin’ out truffles with an overgrown porker, that featherbrained scheme about ostrich feathers, an’ ya can’t forget...”
Rebecca, who was in no mood to listen to a list of her past mistakes, whacked Baloo with the sketchbook, causing lemonade to spill on it. “Baloo! Look what you’ve done!”
“Me?” Baloo cried. “You’re the one that hit me, lady! It’s bad enough ya got my shirt soaked, but to waste perfectly good lemonade...” He looked sadly at his nearly empty bottle.
Her eyes flashing dangerously, Rebecca retorted, “Well, I wouldn’t have hit you if you hadn’t...”
Their argument was curtailed by Molly exclaiming, “Look! On the back of the book!”
Rebecca flipped the sketchbook over. Faint shapes were emerging where the lemonade had streaked it. She grabbed Baloo’s bottle from him just as he was about to take another drink, prompting an annoyed, “Hey!” from him and started dabbing more lemonade on the back cover. Little by little, a picture emerged.
Molly leaned over the armrest to get a better look. “I think I see some writing down near the bottom, but I can’t tell what it says.”
Rebecca dribbled more lemonade over the letters. When they became clear, she read, “Shakenquake Island?”
Both Baloo and Kit jumped as if they had been stung by a bee.
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