Regan�s apartment

�He�s right behind you, Robinson!� twenty-nine-year-old Regan shouted at the TV. �Turn around, you moron! He�s got a chair! Jericho�s gonna smack�oooh, that�s gotta hurt! �

Twenty-one-year-old Dan rolled his eyes and leaned back on his uncle�s couch and burped. �Not like they can hear you, Uncle Bill,� he drawled.

�Yeah? Well I�d like to get in that ring and show that idiot referee Robinson just how you call a match. First of all, there�s no help for you if Triple H�s skanky wife can distract you. Second, when she does, it�s only obvious that someone�s gonna get the brass knucks and a chair across the back.�

The referee turned around just in time to see Chris Jericho pin Triple H. After raising Jericho�s arm, labeling him the winner of the match, the referee happened to notice the dented folding chair in the corner of the ring. Chuck Robinson�s mouth dropped open as he rushed over to grab the chair.

In a heated argument, Jericho, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, and Robinson exchanged words. Chris Jericho made it clear that he didn�t know anything about the chair. What he didn�t see was The Undertaker coming to the ring followed by The Rock. Stephanie did a double take when she saw the two large men coming into the ring and tried to get Jericho�s attention. He waved her away as he continued to argue with the referee.

�Oh, this is gonna be sweet!� Regan said as he set his can of beer down. �The Undertaker doesn�t mince words!�

The Rock quickly checked on Triple H to see if he was okay and joined The Undertaker as he made his way over to Chris Jericho. Without saying a word, the two men stood on each side of Jericho. The Undertaker folded his arms and glared at him while The Rock put his hands on his hips and stuck his chest out.

�If Trixie�s watching this, she�s probably hit the roof already,� Dan said with a big grin. He knew what a guilty pleasure professional wrestling was for her.

�She likes The Rock, right?�

�No, that�s Honey. Trixie likes The Undertaker, but is still waiting for Sting to make his appearance.�

�He�s never gonna do it, Dan,� Regan said. �Remember how he said that WCW ran through his veins? I think he meant it.�

�Or else he was just reading the cue cards,� Dan said with a smirk and downed the rest of his beer.

�Yeah, I�m sure. We�ll have to wait and� �Regan stopped talking just as The Rock pushed Stephanie down on the canvas mat. She had been clawing at him in an attempt to get him away from Chris Jericho. Soon, Chris Jericho realized the two burly men were giving him the stare down.

All mayhem erupted in the ring as more wrestlers came out to help and Triple H came back to consciousness again. Hardcore wrestlers appeared carrying garbage cans and folding chairs.

�Look at Stephanie run out of the ring!� Regan crowed. �And here comes Lita with a pogo stick!�

�That end of the show, I think,� Dan stumbled through his words. �Mind if I crash here tonight? I don�t think I�� Dan started to stand up but his arms and legs felt like lead. He finished his sentence with more energy than normal. ��I�can�make it�home.�

�Not a problem. Good night.�

�The room�s spinning,� Dan said with a bleary-eyed expression. �Oh. G�night Uncle Bill.�

The next morning rolled around quickly as the bright morning sun peaked in the window, right into Dan�s stinging, bloodshot eyes. He awoke to the sounds of clanging and running water coming from the small kitchen.

He sat up and rubbed his eyes. It took a few seconds to figure out where he was. �I�m going for a walk,� he grumbled as he smoothed his hair down and straightened his shirt, which had twisted during the night.

�Here, take these with you,� Regan said as he handed his nephew a pair of sunglasses. �Your eyes are gonna hurt if you don�t.� He returned to washing dishes when Dan accepted the glasses.

�Thanks, Uncle Bill,� Dan moaned. �Don�t know when I�ll be back.� He stepped outside in the sunlight and took a breath of fresh air. Instead of smoothly letting the air out of his lungs, he coughed and sputtered while trying to control the heavy feeling in his stomach.

Crabapple Farm

�I just love it when our two men can beat the crap out of that weenie Jericho,� Twenty-year-old Honey Wheeler sighed as she rolled onto her stomach. She had spent the night at her best friend Trixie Belden�s house and watched �Smackdown� the night before. �And did you see just how tender-hearted The Rock is? He made sure Triple H was okay before thrashing Jericho.�

Trixie grinned. �I�m waiting for that day when my Stinger comes down out of the rafters and takes them all out.�

�I thought that when the NWO showed up, Sting would also,� Honey said with a shrug. �It doesn�t matter. The Rock, Scott Hall, and Big Sexy are all that count.�

�Says you, Honey,� Trixie said with a grin. �Smells like breakfast�s ready. Let�s go.�

�What�s your mom doing, Trix?� Honey asked as they walked into the kitchen.

The radio was blaring and Mrs. Belden was dancing around the kitchen, preparing breakfast while singing to �Magic Carpet Ride� by Steppenwolf.

�She�s dancing, Honey,� Trixie said with a shrug. �What does it look like she�s doing?�

�Good morning, girls,� Mrs. Belden said with a smile. �Have a seat and I�ll get you some breakfast.� There was a certain rosy flush to her cheeks as her blue eyes twinkled. As she danced over to the counter, her blonde curls bounced.

The heavy beat to �Magic Carpet Ride� changed to a slower paced song. The twinkle in Mrs. Belden�s eyes grew distant.

�I haven�t heard this song in ages,� she sighed. �Chicago was a favorite of ours when we were dating,� she said to the girls. Softly, she sang:

Saturday, in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
People dancing, people laughing, a man selling ice cream
Singing Italian songs

Trixie giggled and poured orange juice for Honey and herself. �Gleeps, Moms, no need to serenade us.�

Mrs. Belden smiled. �We had fun in those days in spite of the Vietnam War. Dad and I used to go walking in the park.� She blushed as she recalled one certain walk they took. �I think it was about 1972. There was a protest in Central Park. We were there just to see what was happening. I�d never been to a protest before. To this day, I�m not sure how their methods were supposed to be effective, but�well, they were protesting the war by making free love all over the place, trying to avoid the police.�

Honey rolled her eyes. �Well, it seems that Central Park is the place to go these days if you want sex in the park. Patches found a girlfriend there, you know.�

Trixie laughed so hard she nearly spit out her orange juice.

�Gleeps, what�s with all the noise in here?� said a voice from the back door.

�Come on in, Dan!� Mrs. Belden said as she let him in. �I�ve got eggs and bacon ready!�

Dan�s face turned green. �I-I think I�ll pass on that, Mrs. B,� he said holding his stomach. �I can handle the smell right now, but just not the taste.� He sat down at the table.

�Dipping into granny�s medicine, Dan?� she asked. �Let me get you a good remedy.�

�A glass of water will be all right.�

�Nope. Water won�t do for a hangover,� she said as she started digging into the refrigerator. �Here�s one of Peter�s beers. Slug this thing down. I know you�ll want to lose it by smelling it right now, but you�ll thank me in the end.�

Dan stared at the can through the dark sunglasses. �I had about six of these last night with about two rum and cokes in there somewhere.� He opened the can and automatically took a whiff and jerked it away from his nose.

Trixie and Honey watched in silence. �Is this how you cure a hangover?� Trixie asked.

�Nothing can cure a hangover,� Mrs. Belden said. �Except for maybe some good sleep in a dark room. But, this will help subdue it for a while to make living tolerable. Don�t forget, I was a child of the late sixties and early seventies. I know more than you think.� She headed back for the kitchen.

Trixie nodded her head and looked over to Dan, who held his head in his hands. He lifted his head up and took the sunglasses off.

�Oh my aching head,� he moaned. He had to admit, the beer did make him feel better even though he still wanted to put himself out of his misery. Dan lifted his head up and opened his cool blue eyes.

�Man, is it bright in here!� he yelled. �When did everything turn to yellow?�

Trixie and Honey looked at each other and back to Dan again. �It�s not yellow,� Trixie said softly. �The sun�s just shining real bright.�

Honey got up from the table and closed the blinds. �Is that better?�

Dan shut his eyes and nodded. �Much.�

Mrs. Belden appeared from the kitchen holding a picnic basket. �Trixie, Dad and I will be leaving soon for the coast. Bobby should be home from the Lynches around noon. Jim called earlier and wanted you guys to come up and help exercise the horses. Since Brian and Mart won�t be home from their camping trip until next week, Regan will need more help.�

The back door opened and twenty-year-old Diana ran in waving a letter. �Hey guys, guess what?!� she called.

Dan grabbed his head and let out a loud groan.

�Oh, I�m sorry,� she said as she tried to stifle her excitement, which was bubbling over. �I didn�t mean to just run in like that.�

�No problem, Diana,� Mrs. Belden said as she wrapped her arm around her daughter�s friend. �What�s all the excitement about?�

�It�s this letter I got!� she yelled again.

�I�m gonna go home,� Dan groaned. �Tell Jim I won�t be going for a ride with you guys,� he said to the girls. �Thanks for the beer, Mrs. B.�

Diana blinked and looked over at Mrs. Belden, who just winked. �I�m sorry Dan; I didn�t mean to chase you out of here.�

Dan slipped the sunglasses on again and slowly headed for the door. �It�s not your fault, Di. I just had a few too many at Uncle Bill�s.�

�Hope you�re feeling better,� Trixie said and followed Dan to the door.

Mrs. Belden had followed too. �You don�t have to go home, Dan,� she said. �Brian and Mart aren�t using their beds right now so you can sleep on them if you like.�

Dan looked out into the bright sunlight and winced. �I think I�ll take you up on that,� he said sleepily and headed upstairs.

Diana waited until Dan was upstairs until she asked about the beer.

�Just an old trick to help with hangovers,� Mrs. Belden answered. �So again, what�s the excitement about?�

�Okay, I got this letter from Uncle Monty. He�s inviting us all down to his ranch for the Christmas Holidays again!� Diana hastily pulled the letter out of the envelope. �He said that all we had to do is buy the plane tickets and he would pay us back. Everyone. He even said we should bring friends down, too. He even said that Honey should invite Ben Riker down but that we have to keep him from the ranch staff. He doesn�t want them leaving for good because of a prankster.�

�Gleeps, did you hear that?� Trixie asked Honey.

�Yes, Trix, I�m standing two feet away from Diana,� she said with a silly grin. �I�m kidding.� Her hazel eyes brightened and twinkled as her smile showed off her perfect white teeth. Ben Riker was her cousin who was a known practical joker in the family. �And Ben�s changed quite a bit in the last few years so I�m sure he�ll be fine.�

Diana stuffed the letter back in the envelope. �He wants to introduce us to someone, but he�s not telling who she is.�

�She?� Honey asked.

�Well, he just says �someone� but I think it�s a woman. He�s been very secretive about it.�

�Almost mysterious�� Trixie said with a glint of mischief in her eye.

�And there won�t be any mysteries, Trixie, because no families will be missing or anything like that.� Honey took her dishes to the sink. �If we try really hard, Trixie, I think we can have one trip where there won�t be any mysteries.�

Trixie followed her. �I wouldn�t be too sure about that.�

Manor House Stables

"Is Dan coming with us?� twenty-three-year-old Jim Frayne asked when the three girls arrived at the stable.

�No,� Trixie answered on her way over to Jupiter�s stall, where Jim was getting him ready for riding. �He�s not feeling very well.�

�That�s too bad,� Jim said. �I was hoping he�d come along. I guess now I�m at the mercy of three women today.�

Trixie tilted her head back to give Jim a kiss. �And one of those women is your girlfriend so you�d better be on your best behavior.�

�Didn�t Regan say anything about Dan�s, um, illness?� Honey asked.

�Should he have?�

�I thought he would�ve,� she said and headed for Lady�s stall. �Anyway, we�ve got news! Diana�s uncle��

�Let Diana tell,� Trixie protested. �It�s her news.�

As quickly as she could, Diana told Jim about the letter she received from Uncle Monty and how everyone�s been invited down to Arizona for Christmas.

�Hey that sounds great!� Jim beamed.

�We�ll have to write to Brian and Mart to let them know immediately,� Trixie said. �Although, I think Mart would like to hear it right from Diana and Brian from Honey.�

Diana blushed. �I do plan on telling Mart in great detail all about it.�

�And I plan on making plans with Brian as well,� Honey added.

�I plan on keeping Trixie out of trouble,� Jim said with a big, cheesy grin.

Trixie craned her neck up to kiss his cheek. �Come on, Guy Smiley, let�s go. The horses are getting antsy.�

A few minutes later, they were on their way into the game preserve. Jim led on Jupiter, Trixie followed on Strawberry, Diana on Susie, and Honey on Lady. When the trail widened out a little, Trixie nudged Strawberry into a canter to ride at Jim�s side. Honey and Diana hung back about twenty feet.

�What�s wrong with Dan?� Jim asked Trixie.

�He�s hung over.�

�He got drunk at Regan�s last night?�

�Yep. You know how the two of them like to watch Smackdown on Friday nights? That�s what they were doing.�

Jim shook his head. �Dan, Dan, Dan,� he sighed. �Did he call you to tell you he was sick?�

�No. He was over at our place this morning. Moms was very educational about how to take care of a hangover.�

Jim raised his eyebrows. �Moms as in Mrs. Belden?�

Trixie grinned. �Honey and I were speechless, too. She unleashed all this stuff about making love in the park, protests, drinking, and all that stuff.�

�I never thought your mother was the type of person to do that kind of stuff.�

They rode together in silence for a while, feeling the summer breeze grace their faces. The leaves rustled in the wind and crunched under the horse�s hooves. The occasional squirrel chirped at them and scurried in the trees.

�Making love in the park?� he asked again.

Trixie laughed. �She never said they did that, but others were.� She scrunched up her face and wrinkled her nose. �Gleeps! Thanks a lot, Jim. Now I just pictured the unthinkable!�

�Just try to picture something else,� he suggested.

�Okay, I�m thinking of that deer that we found in the game preserve. Dead deer. Anything�s better than picturing your parents doing the�� Trixie�s eyes grew wide again. �Oh Lord. I did it again!�

He leaned over and brushed her cheek with a kiss. �Will that help take your mind off of your parents?�

�It helps,� she sighed. �I could think of other things that would help too. What do you say we lose Honey and Diana?�

�You vixen!�

Trixie giggled. �At your service!�

�You watch what you say around me,� he said. �I might just take you seriously, and you might get in trouble!� Jim�s wild green eyes sent shivers down Trixie�s spine.

�I just might get in trouble, Jim. But what�re you gonna do about it?�

�I could lay the Smackdown right here, right now!�

Trixie burst out laughing. �You do pretty good for someone who can�t stand wrestling.�

�Yeah, but I hear the three of you talk. I�ve seen some of those submission holds and think I could get you into one if I tried hard enough.� Jim turned his head slightly to peek behind him. �As soon as we get around this bend, there�s another trail that leads off in another direction. Let�s take that trail.�

Trixie winked her approval. Casually, she rounded the bend and took off down a long trail after Jim.

Author�s notes: All things used without permission.

All characters affiliated with Trixie Belden are copyrighted and owned by Goldenbooks/Western Publishing Company.

Smackdown, The Rock, The Undertaker, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, Chris Jericho, Charles �Chuck� Robinson, Lita, Scott Hall, and �Big Sexy� Kevin Nash are all property of The World Wrestling Federation (WWF).

Sting is/was a professional wrestler for World Championship Wrestling (WCW) who owns the rights to his name. No permission was obtained from him to use his name. (But, I�m Steve Borden�s biggest fan and one of his Little Stingers so that automatically means I get free rights)

The NWO is a registered trademark of the WWF.

�Guy Smiley� is a Jim Henson Creation, and while I believe he was on Sesame Street, he might�ve been on the Muppet Show too�(I�m pretty sure it was Sesame Street.)

�Magic Carpet Ride� performed by Steppenwolf.

�Saturday In the Park� performed by Chicago (and Mrs. Belden *g*).

The dead dear Trixie talks about refers to the one she found in �The Mystery off Glen Road.� Sometimes it helps to visualize these things to get the nastier stuff out of your head�

Thanks again to Mary for proof reading and for not taking this seriously�and for making me put an ending on this, such as it is�You truly are a doll, and don�t let anyone else tell you differently. (You sure do know how to slap on those submission holds too.)

Last but not least, thanks to Dave for his idea about how I could use �someone�s pet� and �sex in the park� in the same thought.