15-THE SUN HAS BEEN KIDNAPPED!

THE SUN HAS BEEN KIDNAPPED! That night, I had horrible dreams. First I was drowning in a vat of creamy butter and lard. Then I was being chased by a ten-foot ham-and-cheese sandwich waving a pickle. I WOKE UP with a start. I STARED out my window. It was dark. Was it still the middle of the night? No, my alarm clock said it was ten in the morning. My fur stood on end. I woke up my sister. "Thea! The sun has been kidnapped!" I squeaked.

NOT ME! My sister looked at the DARK SKY. She picked up her globe. She punched in some numbers on her calculator. She pawed through her atlas. The whole time, she was mumbling something about longitude and latitude. Finally, she sat back and sighed. "Now I know why it is still dark," she said. "Ratzikistan is so far north, there are only a few hours of daylight here." We started driving again. The dark sky made me depressed. Who would buy a guidebook on a place where the sun never shines? Oh, why did I come on this MISERABLE trip? I could be home warming my fur in the bright sunshine. I could be sipping a

mozzarella milk shake at Happypaw's Outdoor Cafe. I could be planting yellow flowers in my garden. Well, OK, I didn't actually have a garden. But I always wanted one. I was still dreaming about home when I realized something was wrong. We weren't moving. What was Granddad doing? Stopping for another scenic view? It would be hard to see much in the dark. "Well, that's it," Grandfather William announced. "We're out of gas." He took out a

big can from under his seat. Then he waved it under my snout. "SOMEONE needs to find a gas station," he squeaked, staring right at me. I chewed my whiskers. "Who's going to go?" I asked suspiciously. "Not me, I'm too old," grumbled Grandfather. "Not me, I'm a lady," squeaked Thea. "Not me, I'm cooking!" shouted Tina. "I'm making pizza." I stared out the window. There was no way I was going out there. It was dark. The ground was FROZEN. There were no TREES OR BUSHES or happy woodland animals. We were miles away from civilization. Not my kind of place. I

like lots of rodents. I like taxis. I like bright lights. Oh, how I missed New Mouse City! Two seconds later, Granddad pushed me out the door. Why does he never listen to me? "Don't worry, Mr. Geronimo!" Tina called after me. "I'll keep a nice slice of pizza WARM for you!" I left the camper. I had no choice. They had locked the door behind me!