Stuffy paused a short distance from Muffy's hole, as any cautious recoverer/explorer is trained to do.
He listened intently for any sounds emanating from beyond the edge of the pavement.
But, nothing.
All he could hear was the incessant mumbling of the hippie he had passed earlier.
He motioned to the unkempt being to approach him. "No way, dude!", said the hippie, suspecting trickery.
Stuffy shrugged, then reached into his bag o' tricks to retrieve a grappling hook and heavy wire cable. He carefully attached the hook to a nearby fire hydrant and began to lower himself down into the hole.
The hippie, being somewhat less than the brightest bulb in the bunch, decided if that guy could do it, so could he. So, he tied a piece of hemp which he just happened to be carrying with him to the fire hydrant and started down the hole after Stuffy.
Alas, the hemp wasn't as strong as the wire cable, so it quickly unraveled and came apart, plummeting the now enlightened hippie to the same destination as so many others had gone before him.
Stuffy watched as the hippie when flying by him down into the depths of darkness, then decided he'd seen enough for the time being. He climbed back up out of the hole, then sat down on the sidewalk to contemplate the situation. This bottomless pit was, indeed, something he had never encountered in his past recovery projects.
As he pondered what his next move should be, a donut delivery truck rumbled up the street towards him.
That gave Stuffy an idea ... |
