Time is Running Out

Chapter 14

"Will they ever be here?" wailed Joy desperately.

The others shrugged.

"Maybe ye should shut up," Xana advised. "The 'uards can 'ear ye very well."

As if on cue, one guard demanded, "What's going on?!"

"Nothing," Mary shot back.

"Helloo," the store owner said. "May eye help youu?"

"Um... well... actually, we were just having a lo－"

Emma cut Gemma off. "We were looking for a special sort of... hat."

The store seemed to be selling hats.

"Wot hat?" the store owner said in a posh, snobby accent.

"Um..." Rachel mumbled. "One with... uh, rabbits on top."

"Dat's nooottt speshal."

"It is!" Gemma insisted. "We also want dogs and monkeys and trees on top."

"It has to be blue," Emma joined in, "and it should be the kind that can flip."

"Well. That's going to bee hard." The clerk left to look around his storage.

Immediately, Rachel hissed, "This doesn't look like where they'd keep Joy and the others!"

"I'll ask," Emma hissed back.

Joy, we're at Mayrs' and Squares', but we don't know where you are at all. It seems to be a hat shop. -Emma

My GPS says I'm underground. Please be quick! -Joy

It's not our fault we're not quick! -Rachel

I'm glaring at you. -Joy

We're RESCUING you, and you GLARE at us? -Gemma

Sorry then! >:P -Joy

→_→←_← -Rachel

-_- -Joy

=皿= -Emma

@_@-Joy

Keep on like this and we won't rescue you! -Emma

Done yet??? -Joy

Stop it!!! We're waiting for the
shopkeeper! -Rachel

How long is that going to take?!!! -Joy

I don't know!!! -Gemma

Ugh!! That's it!!! -Emma

Fine! I'm sorry okay? -Joy

T_T-Rachel

"Eeeessss this oookay?" the shopkeeper interrupted.

He was back.

"Umm how about the others?" Gemma said, trying to stall for time.

"Dat ees really hard, mah goodnis!" He stalked off without saying anything else.

The three looked at each other. Rachel shrugged.

"Underground," Emma mused.

"Underground," Gemma echoed.

"Underground!" Rachel said.

They all dashed to the counter...

"Wot are you gals doing?!" a familiar voice shrieked.

"Nothing," Emma muttered. "Can you find the hat quickly?"

The shopkeeper glared at them, no longer even trying to be nice, and went away.

"Phew," Rachel breathed. "That was close."

"Yep," Gemma agreed. "Now let's see what's under that counter."

Emma went first. She ducked under the huge, hot-pink counter.

"I hate this colour," Rachel muttered.

"So do we," Gemma said.

"AHHHHH?!!" they heard Emma's shocked voice scream.

"What is it, Emma?" Rachel called softly. "What did you find?"

"S-see for y-yourself!" Emma stuttered.

She sounds far away, Gemma thought.

Is she okay? Rachel thought.

Rachel and Gemma looked at each other worriedly.

"You go first," Rachel said.

"You go first," Gemma hissed back.

"No, you!" Rachel whispered.

"No way!" Gemma hissed. "I'm claustrophobic!"

"Well, I'm entomophobic!" Rachel shot back.

"And I'm hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobic!" Gemma said.

"What's that?!" Rachel said.

"Fear of long words," came Emma's voice. "You two, why didn't you say... coulrophobia, trypophobia, acrophobia, ophidiophobia, arachnophobia, ornithophobia, ablutophobia, acarophobia, aeroacrophobia, agateophobia, agliophobia, agraphobia, aphenphosmphobia, chronophob--"

But before Emma could finish, someone had tumbled down after her. Into the deep, black, dark hole.

"ARGH!" Emma screamed.

Someone else tumbled down, closing the door.

As the door closed, a posh voice said, "Yor hats, ladees... huh? Where are they? Oh no!－"a clattering as he dropped the hat he was holding and dialed a phone call- "Yes, yes it's meh! Three gals have gone into the Tunnel! Catch zem!"

But the three had already gone and hadn't heard him...