" THIS IS A DISASTER!" Mia screeched as she ran after a naked Leia, who was running fast for someone her age

Annie was holding Leia's dress. " Come on, sweetie." She cooed. " It's really quick."

Emma, meanwhile, was on her phone snacking on cheese. Mia glared at her

" Would you help us?" She asked.

Emma looked up. " Hold on. There's a way to make kids listen to you."

Mia nodded uncertainly. " Well you'd better hurry up."

Emma scrunched her face. " Okay, guess it makes sense."

She put her phone away, cleared her throat, and spoke. " Leia, if you don't go in your clothes we're gonna take your toys away."

Leia stopped for a moment before bursting into tears.

Emma looked perplexed. " It worked in the book...." She muttered.

Annie let out a sigh. " That's because it's fiction."
Mia took the dress and waves it in front of Leia. " Look, Leia! Dress! Get into the dress!"

Leia took it, and Mia breathed relief.

But then the like girl threw it in the trash

" NOOO!" they yelled, scrambling to the trash.

Mia and Annie scrambled to the trash can, their hands reaching in to retrieve the discarded dress. Leia, now giggling and completely unfazed, watched them with mischievous delight.

Annie pulled the dress out and quickly shook off the trash. "Alright, let’s try this again, Leia," she said, trying to keep her tone calm.

Mia, exasperated but determined, held up the dress in front of Leia again. “Look, Leia! Your pretty dress! Put it on, and we can have some fun.”

Leia, still giggling, eyed the dress with suspicion. Emma, standing nearby with her phone in hand, continued to threaten Leia in a rather ineffective manner. “Leia, if you don’t put on the dress, we’ll take all your toys away. And no dessert for you!”

Leia burst into tears again, the threats doing little to calm her down. Mia shot Emma a frustrated look. “Would you stop with the threats, Emma? It’s not working!”

Emma looked defensive. “I’m just trying what I read. It’s supposed to work!”

Annie sighed heavily. “Yeah, well, this is real life, not a book.”

Mia took a deep breath and knelt down to Leia’s level. “Leia, sweetheart, how about we make a game out of it? If you put on the dress, we can play a fun game together, okay?”

Leia looked at Mia with tear-filled eyes, still hesitant but clearly tempted by the idea of a game. Slowly, she took the dress from Mia’s hands.

Mia and Annie exchanged hopeful glances as Leia started to put the dress on, though it was clear she was still unsure.

Mia patted Leia gently on the back. “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Now, let’s get you all dressed up and ready for the party!”

Leia nodded, finally managing to put on the dress properly. Mia sighed in relief as she adjusted Leia’s outfit, smoothing out the wrinkles.

Emma, looking slightly embarrassed, put her phone away and offered a weak smile. “Sorry, I guess I didn’t help much.”

Mia gave her a tired smile. “It’s okay. We got it sorted out. Let’s just make sure we’re all ready for the next part of the party.”

Annie gave Emma a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “You did your best. And now, let’s focus on making sure everything else goes smoothly.”

Leia’s giggles echoed as she played with her new friends, running around in the garden and enjoying the attention. The three babysitters took a deep breath of relief, ready to relax and join in the fun.

However, as the sun began to set higher in the sky and the garden grew quieter, the babysitters started to notice Leia was missing. They searched around, calling her name, but there was no sign of her.

Annie’s heart raced. “Leia? Where are you?”

Emma, who had been snacking on cheese, looked up with a start. “I don’t see her anywhere. Did she wander off?”

Mia, scanning the area anxiously, caught sight of movement near the driveway. Her eyes widened as she saw Leia, with an expression of determined mischief, climbing into the driver’s seat of a car parked nearby.

“NO!” Mia yelled, her voice a mix of horror and disbelief. She watched in stunned silence as Leia, somehow managing to reach the gas pedal, turned the ignition key. The engine roared to life, and the car began to move forward.

Annie, Mia, and Emma rushed to the car, their hearts pounding. The car picked up speed, and Leia’s giggles could still be heard from inside.

“Did she just drive away?” Emma asked, her voice trembling with shock.

Mia shook her head vigorously, trying to process what she had just witnessed. “I didn’t learn to drive when I was six!” she exclaimed.

Annie, equally bewildered, glanced at Mia. “That’s because you’re a ninja, Mia! This isn’t normal!”

Emma, in a state of panic, fumbled with her phone. “What should we do? Do you want cheese? I’ve got some right here!”

Mia snapped, “Forget the cheese! Leia’s driving away! We need to catch her!”

Without waiting for a response, Mia sprinted toward the car, followed closely by Annie and Emma. They reached the edge of the driveway just as Leia’s car turned onto the road and sped away into the distance.

Annie, panting heavily, said, “We need to follow her. She could be in serious danger!”

Mia, already taking off in the direction of Leia’s car, shouted back, “Let’s go! We have to catch up before she gets too far!”

The three eight-year-old babysitters dashed down the street, their feet pounding the pavement as they chased after Leia. They could see the car’s tail lights disappearing down the road, and they pushed themselves to run faster.

Emma, still holding a piece of cheese, gasped, “I never thought babysitting could be this intense!”

Mia shot her a determined look. “Just focus on catching Leia. She’s out of control, and we have to stop her!”

As they ran, the car’s taillights grew dimmer, and the air seemed to grow warner. Mia’s heart raced with both fear and determination. They had to find Leia and stop her before she got into even more trouble.

Soon, they caught sight of the license plate parked haphazardly in a parking spot.

" That's a big waste of space." Emma commented.

Mia shook her head and sighed. " If it's here, Leia must be inside."

They walked in, and caught sight of a three year old.

" LEIA!" they yelled as they ran to the kid.

The kid turned, and the girls screeched to a stop. ThT certainly wasn't Leia

" Sorry!" Mia apologized as she grabbed her friends hands and pulled them out of the aisle

" This is hard." Annie commented.

" It's funny, how that spot is empty " Emma added as she glanced out the window.

" That's ni- wait, what!!" The other two glanced out the window in panic. Where the car once stood, the spots were open.

" Wha..... She must have left!" Annie yelled.

Emma groaned. " Who knew babysitting was so hard?*

Mia shrugged. " Bears asking Jay to help with a diaper change or something!"

They ran out the door, and looked both ways.

" Where'd she go, do you think?" Annie asked.

Mia shrugged. " Dunno. I'm as lost as you are."

“Let’s split up and search the area!” Annie suggested, though her voice was tinged with uncertainty. The empty parking spot loomed as a grim reminder of Leia’s escapade.

Mia nodded, “Okay, but we have to be careful. We don’t know where she could have gone.”

Emma, still clutching a piece of cheese, reluctantly agreed. “Sure, but I don’t think splitting up will help much.” She took a sip of her coconut drink, looking unperturbed as she found a nearby bench to sunbathe on.

Mia and Annie quickly separated from Emma and began their search, scanning every corner of the parking lot and the nearby streets. Their phones, having run out of battery, were useless for navigation. The bright afternoon sun bore down on them, adding to the challenge of their search.

Hours passed as they walked through streets and alleys, peering into shops and asking pedestrians if they had seen a little girl in a dress. The city seemed vast, and the feeling of hopelessness grew as the sun began to dip lower in the sky.

After two hours of relentless searching, Emma finally spoke up, yawning and stretching. “Why is Ninjago getting smaller?” she asked, her voice still lazy from her coconut-induced relaxation.

Mia’s eyes widened in alarm as she glanced around. “It’s because we’re getting farther away!” She gritted her teeth in frustration. “Oh great! We were supposed to get closer, not farther!”

Annie, equally exhausted, tried to stay optimistic. “Mia, can’t you use your wind powers to find her?”

Mia shook her head, her frustration mounting. “My elemental powers don’t work like that. I can’t just use the wind to locate Leia. I wish it were that simple.”

Emma, oblivious to the urgency, continued to sip her coconut, her gaze drifting to the horizon. “I think we might need to take a break. I’m not sure how much help I’ll be right now.”

Mia and Annie exchanged frustrated glances. Mia’s determination was unwavering, though her fatigue was evident. “We don’t have time for breaks. Leia could be in danger, and we need to keep looking.”

Annie, her patience wearing thin, tried to stay focused. “Let’s just keep moving. We have to find her before it gets dark.”

Emma lazily lifted her sunglasses and glanced at them. “You know, sometimes I think too much is made of these things. I mean, how much harm can a little kid really cause?”

Mia shot Emma a sharp look. “This isn’t about how much harm she can cause. She could be lost or hurt! We need to find her now!”

Emma shrugged and returned to her sunbathing ( while walking), indifferent to the urgency of the situation. “I’m just trying to stay calm. It’s better to keep a clear head.”

Annie shot Emma a look. " Emma, the file we were babysitting is missing."

Emma's eyes widened, and her whole demeanor changed.

" WHAT?!" she shrieked. " LEIA IS MISSING AND YOU LET ME SIP COCONUTS?! WHO KNOWS WHWRE SHE IS!"

Mia, without looking up from the road, said, " good to have you back, bestie boo. But right now is not the time to panic."

Emma, realizing the gravity of the situation, snapped into action. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry! Let’s focus and find Leia!”

Mia and Annie, now joined by a frantic Emma, continued their search with renewed urgency. They fanned out again, calling Leia’s name at the top of their lungs.

“LEIA! WHERE ARE YOU?” Annie shouted, her voice echoing off the buildings.

Emma, her previous nonchalance replaced by panic, yelled, “LEIA, COME BACK! PLEASE!”

Mia, who had been scanning the area meticulously, joined in the frantic cries. “LEIA! COME TO MOMMY!”

Emma stopped mid-call and frowned. “I don’t think we’re her mom.”

Mia, glancing over her shoulder with a mix of exhaustion and exasperation, replied, “I know, I know. We had to improvise. Just keep calling!”

The three of them continued their desperate search, crawling through alleys, peering under benches, and checking every dark corner. The city streets, once bustling with activity, seemed to grow eerily quiet as night fell, amplifying their anxiety.

Emma, now fully engaged in the search, helped shine flashlights into dark spaces and checked every possible hiding spot. “Maybe she’s hiding somewhere. We need to cover every inch.”

Annie nodded, her face pale with worry. “Let’s try the park. She might have gone there.”

They raced to the nearby park, their breaths visible in the cool evening air. They split up, running through the playground, peeking behind trees, and checking the slides and swings.

“LEIA!” Mia’s voice cracked with desperation. “WHERE ARE YOU? WE’RE HERE TO HELP YOU!”

Emma, now on her knees and crawling through the grass, called out, “LEIA! PLEASE COME OUT! WE’RE REALLY SORRY!”

Annie, her hands gripping her flashlight tightly, scanned the park’s perimeter. “She has to be here somewhere. She couldn’t have gone far.”

Minutes felt like hours as they continued their frantic search. Their shouts and calls reverberated through the park, mingling with the rustling of leaves and distant sounds of the city.

Just as they were about to give up hope, they heard a faint, familiar sound—giggling. They followed the sound to a small playground area where they spotted Leia, sitting happily in a sandbox and playing with a toy.

Mia’s heart leapt with relief. “Leia! There you are!”

Leia looked up, her face smeared with sand but smiling contentedly. “Hi!” she said, as if nothing unusual had happened.

Emma, her breath coming in ragged gasps, approached Leia cautiously. “Leia, sweetie, we were so worried about you. Why did you drive off like that?”

Leia’s giggles continued as she shrugged innocently. “I wanted to see the city.”

Mia, though relieved, was visibly shaken. “You can’t just wander off like that. It’s dangerous.”

Annie gently lifted Leia from the sandbox, brushing sand off her dress. “Let’s get you home, okay? It’s getting late, and we need to make sure you’re safe.”

Emma, still recovering from her panic, nodded vigorously. “Yes, let’s go. And I promise, next time, I’ll pay more attention.”