Someone in Trouble

Chapter 13: Don't Get Caught

To Robbie there was nothing better than a rainy day. Nobody could do any sports in the sports field, play in the playground, or even park themselves in the park, because it was too cold, wet, windy, and muddy to be outside. On a day like this everyone had to stay indoors where they couldn't move as much. Even better, they had to use inside voices, much quieter than their normal yelling and screaming.

He knew that the kids of LazyTown were sitting inside nice and peaceful because he was there with them and seeing to it that they stayed that way. Well, really the Gizmo Guy had invited Robbie to join the rest of the kids over at his house and he hadn't refused. Instead of playing video games like normal however Pixel had surprised the whole group by presenting them with some board games to choose from.

Of all the board games they could play there could not be one more perfectly suited to Robbie Rotten than Mouse Trap. Building a machine bit by bit, luring the other players in with the bait, setting a trap— it was like the game had been made just for him. And he was about to win.

He blew on the dice in his hand, gave them a shake, and threw them down on the table. They bounced and rolled and landed just right. Ziggy and Trixie leaned in the closest to gawk at the numbers. They gasped and groaned while Robbie gleefully moved his player piece, a little green mouse, around the board and got to put the last part of the machine into place. He turned the crank with relish and there was nothing any of the kids could do but watch the trap go off.

It was like poetry in motion. With a snap the swinging boot kicked over the bucket and sent a steel ball down a zigzagging chute. It slalomed through the next twisting chute until it hit a pole— knocking another steel ball higher up into the little bathtub where it circled the drain before dropping down— landing on a seesaw and flipping the plastic man into the pan where at last the net was released and with a clatter dropped down on the mice around the cheese wheel. In all it took about ten, maybe fifteen seconds before it was over. They were the greatest ten to fifteen seconds of Robbie's life.

"YES!" Robbie sprang up off of the crowded couch in Pixel's room and almost knocked Ziggy over the arm of the sofa. "You're all in my trap," he gloated. "I've WON!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Trixie said, a bit of a sore loser. "You're the biggest, baddest mouse catcher in all of LazyTown, big deal!"

"I'm tired of having to watch you all play," Stingy complained. "It's MY turn to choose a game now, and I want to be player one!"

"Nuh-uh," Ziggy said. "Whoever wins the last game gets to choose what we play next. Isn't that right, Stephanie?" When Stephanie didn't chime in right away Ziggy looked over to his friend. "Stephanie? Are you okay?"

The other kids gradually stopped talking or arguing to look at the girl. Stephanie didn't look upset at losing the game like Trixie and she hadn't made any complaints. Actually she had been quieter than usual for a while. Now she just sat there looking at the finished board game with an odd expression on her face. In the trap there was Trixie's red mouse, Ziggy's yellow mouse, and Stephanie's blue mouse. She seemed to be staring especially hard at the little blue mouse trapped under the net.

"Hey, Pinkie, are you in there?" Trixie waved her hand in front of Stephanie's face. It was enough to break her concentration and Stephanie glanced up with a startled look at all of the people watching her.

"Huh? Oh— yeah, that's right." She slipped on a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I think I'm done playing for now. Stingy can take my place."

"All right!" Stingy cheered as Stephanie got up from the couch. The boy was quick to take her vacated seat and he shoved Mouse Trap clear off the table to slap his own game of choice down before anyone could argue with him again. "Who's ready to play Trouble?"