The first interplanetary detective

Chapter 1. Unplanned visit

To my parents. Best mom and dad life came up with.
Even in a fantastic detective story.

Perhaps each of us at least once became a victim of a silly prank: stapler glued to the table, rubber snake, nestling on the couch, sugar bowl filled with salt. Someone laughs at such silliness, and others take offence. The situation is quite different from evil jokes that can cause serious trouble. Pen with a surprise in the form of dripping ink, hopelessly ruining a new white blouse. The clock turned back that caused the delay to an important meeting. Slippers nailed down the floor and as a result new lump on the forehead. No one wants to feel like a fool, and therefore usually the reaction to such mockery is to be irritation, resentment, and even fury.

Alisa liked witty humour. She always laughed at herself with pleasure and with large pleasure joked around. But she did not like pranks. Neither evil nor harmless. Because she thought that jokes should be said in person, and not organised quietly, but that night, frozen on the threshold of an unfamiliar house, more than anything, she wanted to hear: "Aha! Gotcha! "— and a mocking chuckle next. She even imagined how she would intelligibly explain to the joker to keep a lid on his idiotic sense of humour.

The lights were off; no one responded to the knock. Quiet and serene. An ordinary house whose owners either slept in cosy beds or went for a walk on a warm summer night. But a narrow gap in the doorway was bugging Alisa. Perhaps, of course, it is normal not to lock the door on Irbug. But what if inside her friend really needed help?

Alisa pushed the door.

"Bernard! Are you here?"

Silence, not a single sound. There was darkness in front and the deserted street behind. Only in the house across the road, the lonely window flickered with a bluish light. Probably, the neighbours were still awake. Maybe they talked, sitting in the kitchen with a cup of tea, or watched their favourite TV show. Alisa didn't know if she should knock on their door and ask to call the police? No, probably she shouldn't. Who knows how they will respond to the story of a dishevelled girl, telling about the danger. What was the danger? Why? Alisa did not know. So, she could stay on the threshold, or...

"No, no, you don't!" warned her inner voice, but was too late.

She stepped inside, and suddenly the whole room was flooded with bright light. Alisa closed her eyes.

"What the hell?" she grumbled, then opened her eyes and looked around. "What the hell ..." repeated Alisa, meanwhile, her eyes tried to close from a new shock.

The picture that opened up would have stunned even the most resistant kindergarten teacher. And these people sometimes have to deal with much more sophisticated experiments on markers and paints.

The room looked like creations of a mad designer, who considered it his duty to bring together interior objects in entirely different hues: the walls were green, the ceiling was blue, a dozen colourful pouffes, all bright and catchy. Three coffee tables were disgusting coral, and the other furniture resembled a ghastly yellow. However, despite the complete lack of taste, the owner of the house should be given credit for the love of cleanliness: all things in their colourful places washed and rubbed to a shine. And the air was pleasant, fresh, with a subtle sweetish aroma.

All around was quiet and serene: no calls for help, no crying, no groans. Alisa again thought that all this was someone's stupid joke. If so, then it would be time for the joker to appear. What if the alarm went off? What if the police were already rushing to arrest a girl from Earth who illegally entered not only this house but also on the planet?

Alisa pulled up the backpack straps and hesitantly looked at the poison-lemon door on the right. If she already looked into the house, what's the point of standing in one place? Perhaps to calm the conscience, it's worth checking out the rest of the rooms. She sighed heavily and headed for the door, cursing herself for unnecessary anxiety, and Bernard for not wanting to answer the calls.