Dana looked at Mrs. Michaels. For some reason she had her paw to her head. No, it wasn't her paw, it was a fish. She was holding a fish to her ear. Talking to it. Strange but not the strangest thing Dana had seen in the last week. Dana sat down on the berry bush couch and watched the tv for a bit. It was commercials but Dana wasn't watching them. Instead, she was watching Mrs. Michaels and listening to her.
Of course, Dana could not hear what the other person was saying. She could hear half of the conversation. Mrs. Michaels said, "Yep. That is too bad. Okay. We can do that. Okay. Sure. Okay. We will be ready on Thursday at 2pm. I will tell Dana and write it down. Sounds good. Yep, bye."
I will tell Dana? Whoever Mrs. Michaels was talking to, this conversation was about her, Dana thought. Without the other side of the conversation listening in wasn't much help. Dana was going to have to ask. Mrs. Michaels put the fish down. It made a strange click when it touched the countertop. Dana stood up and walked into the kitchen. Mrs. Michaels threw a fake smile at Dana, "Good news! Your court case has been pushed back. You get to hang out with us longer."
Dana's heart sunk. Her voice cracked as she asked, "Pushed back? Does that mean Marina isn't coming today?"
Mrs. Michaels moved a plate of food onto the table. "Umm, no. Court cases are delicate. They pushed it back to next week."
"WHAT?!" Dana exclaimed. "Next week is too far away."
"Oh, don't worry about it sweetheart. We are going to have so much fun around here that the time will just fly by. Just sit down and eat your breakfast."
Dana did not sit down. Her legs would not let her. She was still expecting this to be a joke or something. Dana waited for Mrs. Michaels to say it was all just a bad joke. But it didn't happen. Still standing, Dana reminded Mrs. Michaels, "Marina said she would be here today at 8am."
"Yes, I remember. But also, remember you missed your appointment with the Judge yesterday? Now things have changed now. Your new appointment is Thursday. Sit down sweety, I will get you some breakfast."
Dana still did not sit down. She was a stone. An unmoving, unflinching, and unfeeling stone. Jeremy said this was how it would happen. One day turns into two, then a week, then a month. Dane was not going to fall into the same trap. She had to convince Mrs. Michaels to help her change the date. But how? Mrs. Michaels was an adult and didn't understand how important this was. While Dana was thinking, Mrs. Michael collected a plate of food and put it at the table. Finally, Dana found the words and spoke, "I can't wait an entire week. It needs to be today. It had to be today! How can we change the court date back?"
Mrs. Michaels tried to console her, "Sweety, I don't make the decisions when the court case starts and ends. Nothing I can do will change it. The judge is a busy man. He takes care of a lot of people. You just have to accept that."
Dana did not sit down. She stood there doing her rock impression. But hope was beginning to fail her. Sadness began to wash over Dana's face. Mrs. Michaels noticed and attempted to calm her down. "Don't worry sweetheart. What is few more days anyways?" She returned to the stove to get another plate. "We will have some fun later. You won't even think about it. Do you like jazz?"
Who cares about jazz? Dana thought as a small tear began forming in Dana's eye. Not a tear of sadness. This tear was pure rage. Dana stayed where she was still fuming over the whole situation. She was going to have to stay here an entire week? Jeremy was right. This was beyond tolerable. Despite her endless anger she walked over to the table and looked at the food. Fish again. Gross. Cats are the worst. Dana gagged at the idea of eating fish every day.
Dana heard the sliding glass door open and shut again. Jeremy came in from outside. He walked past Dana who was not even moving. He looked at her and asked Mrs. Michaels, "What is wrong with her?"
Mrs. Michaels answered him, "She is getting ready to eat. Right Dana?"
Jeremy sat down at the table. Dana watched as Mrs. Michaels handed Jeremy a plate. Jeremy happily tore into his food. How can he eat at a time like this? He just had fish the night before and Jeremy was happy to eat more this morning? Maybe he is damaged. Mrs. Michaels turned back to Dana and pulled out a chair for her. Then she said, "Sweety, you have to eat something. How about you give it a try?"
At that moment if Dana could live off of her rage she would be feed for a solid year. But she took a breath and calmed herself down from a 10 to a 9. Not much of a step down but it was better than nothing. Dana sat down and used her fork to poke at the fish. Luckily it didn't smell like fish. It smelled pretty good actually. The good smell of the food dropped her rage down from a 9 to a 7. Out of the corner of her eye Dana noticed that Mrs. Michaels was still watching her. Jeremy was now watching her too. She used the fork to cut off a piece of fish. Jeremy began to laugh but Mrs. Michaels elbowed him ending his laughter before it started. Dana put the piece of fish in her mouth expecting it to taste horrible. But it didn't. It tasted pretty good actually. Weird. She took another bite. Then another. After the third bite Mrs. Michaels returned to the stove to make a plate for herself.
Jeremy asked Dana, "You like it?"
Dana did not have the chance to reply, Mrs. Michaels answered him, "I sure hope she does. I can't imagine anyone would hate my five-star breakfast." Dana continued to eat until the food was almost gone. While it looked like fish, it tasted like a combination of different food. Possibly bacon, eggs, and something else. With absolutely no fishy after taste. Mrs. Michaels returned to the table with her plate and sat down to eat.
Jeremy finished his food first but stayed to watch Dana eat. Mrs. Michaels saw him staring at Dana and said, "If your finish you can go back outside. It looks like the rain is lightening up. Maybe later you can show Dana that fun game you play?"
Jeremy got up and went back outside. Dana continued to eat until her plate was half empty. She couldn't eat anymore. Mrs. Michaels took Dana's plate despite the fact she didn't eat it all. Dana was in a new environment and Mrs. Michaels understood. Dana looked at Mrs. Michaels with a serious face. This was her last chance, Dana said, "Please, Mrs. Michaels. Can you take me to the Judge today? We can convince him to change his mind."
Mrs. Michaels shook her head, "Oh no, sweety. We can't do that. Court cases are set in stone. Getting it changed would be impossible. Just put it out of your mind." Dana didn't say anything, but she was screaming in her head again. This was Mrs. Michaels last chance to help. Clearly, Dana was going to need someone else. Her thoughts turned to Jeremy. He had not lied to her about the foster system. This place is a trap. She was going to be stuck here forever if she let it happen.
Not her though, Dana knew that she would not and could not allow herself to be a prisoner of the berry bush. She just needed a plan. Dana got up and went back to the couch in the living room. She remembered a movie she watched with her dad. It was a Bank heist movie. An angry guy with a beard wanted to rob a bank. Not sure why. The Bank had tons of guards, advanced security systems, and police back up less than 1 minute and 45 seconds away. Everyone said it was impossible. Dana couldn't remember all the details of the movie but and would have been complete forgotten to Dana if her father had not been there watching it with her. At some point in the movie he said, "Nothing is impossible".
Dana remembered those words. A reminder that Mrs. Michaels accidentally triggered. "Getting a court date changed would be impossible". Who has the power to change it? Well, the Judge does. Only the Judge does. Dana's brain kicked into high gear. The plan was taking shape. And she needed help. Her eyes fixated on the back door. As Mrs. Michaels was cleaning off her plate, Dana went back to the sliding glass door. She looked at Mrs. Michaels then to Jeremy. The bank heist was about to begin. Jeremy was sitting in the same seat he was in before. He was looking at Dana, puzzled.
Dana opened and shut the door behind her as she walked outside. She sat down in the seat near Jeremy. It was time to make an ally. She looked him square in the eyes and put on her serious face, "Jeremy, I need your help."
"Really?! How so?"
Dana took a breath and said, "Mrs. Michaels's job is to keep us here as long as possible. I need to see the Judge to go home. Marina isn't coming today. So…" She paused, "So, I need you to take me to the Judge."
Jeremy laughed, "Wow really?! That is all you need. At least it's not something hard." Jeremy continued to laugh but quickly stopped when he saw Dana wasn't fazed by his sarcasm. Jeremy composed himself, "You are serious? How could I get you to the Judge? I can't drive."
"You have to! I can't be here for an entire week Jeremy! My parents are waiting for me. I want to go home. Please?!" Dana begged him. Jeremy had no words, he reached for the answers in his brain but could only sit there with his mouth open. Dana finally asked, "Jeremy can you help me?"
Jeremy snapped back to the conversation, "Yeah, I will help you. What do you need from me?"
"Do you know where the Judge is?"
"Yeah, I met him once in family court. In the courthouse. You need to get to the courthouse during the daytime. It is downtown, big stone building. The Judge is there."
"What does he look like?"
"He is one of a kind, tall, black robe, you can't miss him. He is the most important person in the building."
"How long would it take us to get there?"
"Dana! You can't just walk out the door." Jeremy looked to Mrs. Michaels inside. "She won't just let you leave. Plus, the courthouse has, like guards and stuff."
"Jeremy, you have been here for three months. You know this place. And you are the only one who can help me. I will make a deal with you. You help me get to the Judge and I when I get home, I will mail you all my Halloween candy from last year."
Jeremy's attention was caught, "How much candy are we talking about here?"
Dana held her hands open wide. Then she said, "It's like 50 pounds. More than you or I could ever eat. Now will you help me?"
Jeremy scratched his chin, "Okay, I will help you, but I can't get you to the Judge. I can only get you away from Mrs. Michaels. The rest is up to you. Then you owe me 50 pounds of candy. Got it." Dana nodded. Then Jeremy held up the pinky. He said, "Pinky swear. 50 pounds." Dana held up her hand and pinky swore with Jeremy. She was in deep now.
"I need some time to think. You want out of here today? We need to act now." Jeremy thought for a second, "I would say somehow I could sneak you into school then you could run from there. But getting out of school is almost harder than getting out of here. More Adults, with better security."
Dana waited patiently for Jeremy to come up with a plan. Finally, Jeremy said, "I got it. Follow me and agree with everything I say." Dana got up and followed him. Jeremy opened the door and went inside. Mrs. Michaels was cleaning the stove. Jeremy walked in the kitchen and looked at her. "Mrs. Michaels do you remember that awesome train book that we had? The one with all the different kinds of trains in it?"
Mrs. Michaels looked up from her cleaning, "Umm, yes. I remember you liked it very much. What about it?"
"I was telling Dana about it. She is a huge train fan. Right Dana?"
Jeremy looked at Dana expecting some back up. Dana said, "Yup, I like the… red ones."
Jeremy cringed a bit then turned back to Mrs. Michaels, "See, she really loves trains. I was hoping to show her that book." His voice kind of gave out. But he continued, "Do you remember where we put it?"
Mrs. Michaels stopped cleaning and thought for a second. "I don't mean to burst your bubble here, but I do recall that book was a rental. We returned it to the library at least two weeks ago." Jeremy didn't say anything. He just stood there and waited. Mrs. Michaels went back to her cleaning.
Seeing that Mrs. Michaels wasn't taking the bait, he added, "That's too bad. That was a very informative book…" Mrs. Michaels continued to clean ignoring him. Jeremy added some more, "you know, we haven't been to the library in the longest time…"
Finally, Mrs. Michaels broke. She turned back to Jeremy and Dana standing there and said, "Let me guess, now you want to go to the library?"
Jeremy smiled. "On a rainy day like today why not?"
Mrs. Michael turned back to the stove and finishes up her cleaning. Without looking at him she said, "You will be going back to school on Monday and already you are wanting to read books again? I am not complaining. Reading is good for you. However, it seems slightly out of character for you. Especially since you have been on suspension. You know when you get older you start picking up on these things."
Mrs. Michaels and Jeremy talked back and forth for a few seconds, but Dana toned it out. Her minded was caught on the word, Suspension. How had Jeremy been suspended from school? What did he do? Was he the right choice for a partner? These thoughts ran through Dana head but suddenly she noticed Mrs. Michaels was looking at her. She had just asked Dana a question, but Dana didn't hear it. Oops. Dana shifted back to the conversation and said, "What was that?"
Mrs. Michaels looked to Dana and asked again, "I said, are you in the same boat as Jeremy? Do you want to go to the library too?"
Jeremy gave a thumbs up behind his back that Dana could see but Mrs. Michaels could not. Then Dana replied, "I love books."
Within a few minutes Mrs. Michaels collected her keys and put them in a small bag. From behind the door Mrs. Michaels grabbed a folded-up mushroom. Mrs. Michaels then led Jeremy and Dana into a section of the Berry bush that Dana had not seen yet. It was dark, but once the lights were turned on Dana could see a giant fluffy pink cat toy with wheels. Dana just rolled her eyes at this, but it was not a surprise at this point. They all climbed inside of Mrs. Michaels's cat toy. Mrs. Michaels called out, "Seatbelts." Dana was surprised Mrs. Michaels was willing to leave the house in the rain. To the best of her knowledge, cats hated water. Jeremy sat in the front while Dana sat behind Mrs. Michaels. With a heavy rumble the car toy roared to life. She backed the toy out to the river and headed toward the jungle. This brought a smile to Dana's face. She was one step closer to home.
They drove for a few minutes. Dana did not say much. She was looking out the window to the interesting sights going by. Huge bottles with wheels, the people inside could be seen clear as day through the glass. An orange with wheels, why wouldn't it just roll? It is round after all. She lost count at the large number of objects going up and down the river. Dana imagined herself on the outside of the cat toy looking in. She saw herself inside the toy but stopped because it was too ridiculous. The giant fluffy pink cat toy was too comical to take seriously.
Before Dana could think of something else Jeremy spoke, pulling Dana out of her vision, "Where are we going? This isn't the way to the library."
Mrs. Michaels answered him, "Don't you remember last time we went to the library on a Friday? We circled for 20 minutes trying to get a parking spot. And at this time of day, we won't get one at all. Nope, we are parking at the Convention Center."
Jeremy started to complain. But Dana got distracted by the jungle outside. She was looking at all the huge trees and wondered where was the Judge at exactly? How was she going to find him in all of this? Mrs. Michaels stopped the cat toy at a river intersection. Dana looked over to the people standing at the corner. They were waiting to cross the river. That would be her in a little bit. If she can get out of Mrs. Michaels claws. She wondered what Jeremy's plan was. If he even had a plan.
Soon enough Mrs. Michaels pulled the cat toy into a large field. She stopped the cat toy and said, "Here we are. Nothing beats free parking." Stepping out of the cat toy Mrs. Michaels walked to the back of the cat toy and pulled out the mushroom she brought from the house. With the press of a button the mushroom inflated to ten time its normal size. Mrs. Michaels used it to block the rain and said, "What a lovely day."
Jeremy and Dana both tried to get under the mushroom but there was not enough room. Mrs. Michaels started to walk as Jeremy and Dana followed her. Along the way Dana noticed several people carried mushrooms as they walked. Dana looked at them wondering where you buy such a thing.
Jeremy looked back at Dana and gave her a wink. Dana looked confused at Jeremy. But he said nothing back and continued to walk. Maybe this was some form of reassuring her that he still had a plan in effect. Quickly he grabbed her hand and Mrs. Michaels hand. He stated loudly, "Form a chain!"
Mrs. Michael looked at him and smiled, "Good thinking Jeremy." Dana squinted to prevent rain from getting in her eyes. Mrs. Michaels led the group as they held hands. Mrs. Michaels said, "Stay close, we will be out of the rain in no time." She led them across the river and down into a tunnel of some kind.
Dana looked around and noted that the interior of the tunnel was lined with stone stairs and mud walks. This tunnel had been built by someone, but for what purpose? Dana thought, at least the floor was dry. That was nice. There were several other people coming and going in the tunnel. Once out of the rain Mrs. Michaels deflated the mushroom and stuck it under her arm. Then she shook the rain out of her fur.
Still leading the way, Mrs. Michaels led them to a pinecone that had many pines missing. She reached in her bag and said, "Jeremy you first." Mrs. Michaels put something on the pinecone that made a clacking noise. Jeremy walked through the pinecone as it spun like a top. Interesting. Dana tried to follow him, but it did move. Mrs. Michaels said, "Wait one second Dana I have enough for everyone." Once again, Mrs. Michaels put something on the pinecone that made another clacking noise. As she did Dana noticed the pinecone begin to move. With the slightest push the pinecone spun, and Dana was on the other side with Jeremy. Was this Jeremys plan? Dana thought this was her chance to make a run for it. But Jeremy grabbed her hand and held it tightly. He waited with a smile on his face until Mrs. Michaels cleared the pinecone. Then he grabbed her hand as well. Dana was very confused by this. What is his plan? Are we really going to the library? Jeremy was working hard to keep them together. Maybe he had a change of heart?
Mrs. Michael led them down deeper into the tunnel. There a lot of people were waiting. Dana noticed that the tunnel had opened up much wider than before. Dana wanted to ask questions, but she kept her mouth shut for now. Mrs. Michaels slowed down and stopped near some of them. Dana looked around the tunnel to the wall on the left, the stone tiles were shaped like scales. She looked to the right wall. It also had scale shaped tiles. What? This was a bit too much for Dana. Having followed for this long without saying a word, she had to ask. Dana leaned into Jeremy and whispered, "What is this place?"
Jeremy whispered back, "Shh, here it comes." Dana looked around at the exit. What was coming? She felt a rush of wind and a loud noise from the tunnel. A flash of light and a rumble. What was happening? Dana watched as the largest snake she had ever seen slithered out of the tunnel. It was massive. Over twice her height and longer than the anything she had ever seen. She looked around to see everyone reaction. No one thought this was strange, this was perfectly normal to everyone. No one even batted an eye at the humongous reptile.
This was the moment that Dana realized that while the jungle itself was huge, she never even thought about what could lie underground. All this time under the surface of the jungle were massive snake tunnels. Snakes larger than any man, woman, or child in the jungle. The snakes could easily rule this land. Or maybe they used to but now they live in harmony with the other animals. How else would you explain this place? Dana tried to imagine the massive underground snake empire. She imaged the large number of snakes living underground in the jungle, but her imagination was nothing in comparison to the size of the snake that moved right before her eyes.
The snake slithered to a halt and small doors on the side of the snake opened. Inside, dozens of animals came flooding out. Just like people rode inside the pelican yesterday. Dana thought this was another animal being used for transportation. She was right. Everyone waited until all the passengers where off then they started loading in. It was as if everyone knew and understood how the snake operated. Even Jeremy was unfazed by the creature.
Jeremy saw the look on Dana's face and leaned in close to whisper, "This is it. I can't get you to the courthouse. But I can get you away from Mrs. Michaels. When I let go, you let go. Okay?"
Dana whispered back, "What is your plan?"
People and animals were still loading onto the snake. Without looking at the children Mrs. Michaels said, "So many people here today. Maybe we should wait for another car?"
Jeremy looked down the tunnel and said, "The last car has a few seats available."
Mrs. Michael led the two children down the tunnel toward the end of the snake. Looking inside she saw an area was still crowded but had fewer people. She said, "Here we go." Holding Jeremy's hand, she walked into the snake door. She walked past a few people to the bench inside. There were no available seats. Mrs. Michaels looked back to Jeremy and said, "I guess we will be standing the whole trip. Jeremy, you and Dana stand in front of me." But as she looked down to Jeremy, she realized he was not holding Dana's hand anymore. She looked around and didn't see Dana anywhere. A flash of fear rolled over Mrs. Michaels's eyes as she realized what was happening. She looked toward the door but too many people were in the way. She pushed through the crowd but only made it to the automated doors as they closed in front of her.
Mrs. Michaels looked out the windows to see Dana on the other side of the door outside of the snake. Panic set in Mrs. Michaels attempted to force the door open, but the doors were strong and would not budge.
Dana looked at Mrs. Michaels trying to open the doors. She felt bad but this was all a part of the plan. Dana looked for Jeremy, but the snake was so crowded that she could not see him. Wherever he was Dana was sure he had a smile on his face. Once again Dana's attention was turned back to the frantic Mrs. Michaels tried to open the door but without success. The doors were strong but moved only a little bit. After another try Mrs. Michaels pressed a button on the door and shouted into it, "Open the door! You are leaving a passenger behind!"
The snake did not respond. Instead, the snake slowly started to slither away. Mrs. Michaels yelled again, "Hello? Can anyone hear me?" She grabbed the arm of a human sized tiger that was sitting nearby. She shouted something at him. But nothing Mrs. Michael said slowed the snake down. Before the train was out of sight Mrs. Michaels yelled at Dana. But once again nothing could be heard. Within few seconds the snake, Mrs. Michaels, and Jeremy were completely out of sight. The tunnel was empty except for Dana standing alone.
Dana immediately removed the money bag outfit she had been wearing. An absolutely unnecessary outfit, Dana thought. Now back in her original cloths, she left the money bag outfit on the ground and looked around the tunnel. There were exit signs to the left and right. She started walking the same way they entered. On the way out she saw more animals coming in. No one suspected Dana was a runaway. Then again, how would they know? Outside it was still raining but Dana was back in the jungle where she wanted to be. The rain was only a light misting at this point. No reason to wait it out.
Dana turned around to get her bearings. She looked to the right. That way was back toward the Michaels's berry bush. She looked to the left. That was the directions of the largest trees and therefore downtown. The courthouse is downtown. With her directions set, Dana began walking toward the courthouse. How far was it? Miles? How many rivers would she have to cross? 50? 100? Who knows? Dana had one thought on her mind. Home. And the only way to get home was through the Judge. Surely, he had the power to send her home. Marina said he was a busy man, but he was going to have to make time for her. Today. Dana wasn't going to stop until he did.
It was at this point Dana realized that she owed Jeremy 50 pounds of candy. How would she get that much candy?