Someone in Trouble

Chapter 5: Will You Listen?

Trixie sat in the little red wagon perched at the top of the slide and addressed the other kids standing and waiting at the bottom.

"All right everybody, stand back, 'cause this baby's going to fly. Are you ready for this?" She barely gave any time for an answer as she rattled off a "Three-two-one-GO!" and pushed forward, sending her wagon careening down the steep incline.

"Woah!" Pixel exclaimed as the girl whooshed down the slide and thundered across the blacktop in a red blur. His computer chirruped and beeped in his hands as it timed Trixie. "That's gotta be a new land-speed record!"

"Go, Trixie!" Ziggy cheered. Trixie laughed over the rumbling of the wheels and the rush of wind blowing back her pigtails.

"No, no!" Stephanie cried out, pointing sharply ahead of the way Trixie's cart was barreling at top speed. "Trixie, watch out!"

"Oh-h, boy!" was all Trixie could say through her excited yelps, her eyes widening on the unforeseen obstruction to her ride— A tightly shut gate, and she was making a course straight for it! "I can't stop this thing! HELP!"

"Oh no, I can't look!" Ziggy whimpered and hid his face behind his lollipop, peeking around it when he dared.

"What is this, a playground or the Autobahn?" Robbie Rotten popped up from behind the other side of the locked gate out of breath. Scrambling with difficulty over the waist-high wall the man panted and strained to force open the latch.

"Hurry!" Pixel shouted. "At the speed Trixie's going she's going to crash in only seven more seconds!"

"Your watch better be fast!" Robbie squawked, throwing his shoulder into the gate and meeting only resistance. The fast approaching roar of wagon wheels made him sweat and his hands slapped a frantic beat against the door. Somewhere overhead a swishing and swooping noise grew louder— Sportacus, arriving to save the day—

"Watch out!" Trixie shouted, helpless to do anything more.

Robbie gave one more desperate pile drive into the gate and at last the doors burst open. He straightened up and stretched out his arms, giving a victorious laugh for his accomplishment.

In the next instant Trixie's cart crashed into the backs of his legs. Robbie slammed face-first into the ground and the wagon rambled over his back, squashing out a few more grunts from him as Trixie trundled through the opened passage. Sportacus landed on the other side and was ready to put an end to Trixie's joyride, helping to finally pull her to a halt. The other kids came running while Trixie jumped out of the wagon with an exhilarated hoot.

"That was AWESOME!" Trixie exclaimed.

"Ugh—" Robbie coughed, pushing himself up off the ground. "Sunday drivers..."

"That was a close one!" Sportacus said. It wasn't just close in Robbie's opinion, and he had the tread marks up his spine to prove it. He groaned and growled while his body creaked and complained. It was hard work just straightening his back after that drive-by. Meanwhile Sportacus was still talking to the kids. "What were you trying to do anyway?"

"Ah, well, I just wanted to go as fast as you can, Sportacus," Trixie said. "It's a lot harder than it looks."

"Next time make sure to wear a helmet," Sportacus suggested with a wink. Trixie conceded with a laugh.

"Next time?" Robbie interjected. "Why should there be a next time?"

"No one can get better at something if they don't practice," Sportacus said.

"That's right!" Trixie said, already emboldened despite her near-accident. "I'll go even faster next time, I'm sure of it!"

"Yeah!" Pixel said, "You could even break the sound barrier!"