Floors #3: The Field of Wacky Inventions by Patrick Carman Page B

up,” Remi said, tipping his bottle and guzzling all but the very last of its contents in one superhuman swig.
    Alfred was game, drinking half of his bottle in no time flat, while Leo watched and waited. Remi’s eyes went wide, like he was holding something gigantic inside that was getting bigger by the second. His mouth opened and he looked to the sky, letting rip a burp that started low and slow and built to a high-pitched wheezer of unbelievable awesomeness. About halfway through, Alfred chimed in with his own world-class effort, andthe two performed a burping duet until, finally, after what seemed like a month, Remi’s burp fizzled out. Albert quickly chugged the rest of his bottle and kept burping, like a big balloon slowly releasing air, until Miss Sheezley yelled, “Disgusting!” and he laughed and laughed. There’s nothing quite like the sound of laughing and burping at the same time — in the pantheon of burpdom, this is known as lurping — and pretty soon Lucy and Leo were laughing, too. Then a magical sort of thing happened, a rare and wacky thing. From somewhere far below, there came a sound unlike any other — full of honks and whoops as it carried up through the trees.
    “Merganzer!” Leo said, standing up and running to the edge of the roof in a flash. When he reached the rail and leaned over, he realized how far up into the trees they’d gotten. There were branches all around him, but there was a clear view to the ground where Merganzer D. Whippet could be seen walking the ducks.
    “Merganzer!” Leo cried out. Merganzer stopped making his distinct laughing sound and looked up.
    “Well, if it isn’t Leo Fillmore! I thought I heard some burping. Or better yet, some lurping.”
    Remi leaned his head over next to Leo’s.
    “And Remi! Very glad to see you both safe and sound and still in the hunt.”
    “Thanks for the Flart’s Fizz!” Remi shouted. “That was a real pick-me-up.”
    “How’s Betty doing?” Leo asked as Alfred hobbled near.
    Merganzer looked down at the mother duck and her ducklings and shook his head.
    “She’s in a bit of a funk. I can’t figure why. I’ve been giving her animal crackers and taking her for walks. But nothing seems to help.”
    “I believe I know what’s bothering her,” Alfred Whitney said. He held Comet carefully in both hands, for Comet wasn’t a flyer just yet. He’d never make it to the bottom on his own. But he did make whatever that sound is that ducklings make, an almost honk.
    Looking up, Betty went bonkers.
    “I believe this is one of hers,” Alfred said. “That must be why she’s so upset.”
    Merganzer D. Whippet looked thoughtfully at the duck in his charge and the duckling way overhead.
    “Well, there’s nothing to be done just now. At least I know why Betty’s been so difficult.”
    “And you know the first rule of an adventure,” Leo said.
    Betty was honking like crazy, but Merganzer didn’t seem to mind.
    “Always bring a duck!” Merganzer called out. “And Comet is a very good little duck.” With a nod, he started off, his long walking stick before him, and the rest of Betty’s ducklings followed.
    “I enjoyed the burping,” Alfred added. “First class.”
    Betty looked up. If it was possible for a duck to have a stern look on its face, this one did. It was hard to say if the last few quacks and the scowl were directed at Alfred ( you better bring my duckling back in one piece ) or Comet ( boy, are you ever gonna get it when you finally get down here ). Either way, she’d said her piece and at least knew her missing duckling was only on an adventure, not captured by a monkey or wandering off for a swim in an electric eel pond.
    Lucy had stayed at the picnic all alone, staring at her bottle of Flart’s Fizz. Leo felt sorry for her and became more curious than ever about her story.
    “Let’s show them what a real burp sounds like,” Leo said, smiling at Lucy as he walked back toward her. Lucy smiled back