Cincinnati Apocalypse Part 4

He bided his time, waiting for the youngsters to collect their hugs and well wishes. When the band of tots moved on, Giles, reaching into his jacket, stepped forward.

"Mr. Pooh?" he said, feeling even stupider than he must have sounded, as he drew his wallet from the pocket inside his jacket, "I'm Special Agent Wheeling, FBI." He left the flap of his wallet drop, revealing the fake badge he'd purchased at a toy store. It was a solid-looking, respectable-looking but non-descript badge that bore the letters "FBI" in its center. He was hoping the Pooh person had never seen an FBI badge before (not that he or she was seeing one now) and that the star would look convincing.

"Mmpff," Winnie the Pooh replied. "Ummffph yaumpfgh."

"What?" Giles asked.

The bear waved a paw, signaling Giles to follow before leaving the curb, walking around a nearby corner, and stepping into a narrow alley between two buildings.

Warily, Giles had followed the costumed character. He watched the bear closely as the person within the costume, after a bit of a struggle, removed the ponderous head, revealing herself as a pretty, elfin-faced redheaded woman with a pixie's hairstyle. "I'm Gail," she identified herself. Then, she translated what she'd tried to say a few moments ago, encumbered by the Winnie the Pooh costume: "What can I do for you?"

Giles showed her a photograph in his wallet. "I'm looking for this woman. Have you seen her?"

"What'd she do?"

Giles ignored her query, repeating his own question. "Have you seen her?"

Gail shook her head. "I don't see much of anything inside this outfit."

"Are you certain?" Giles asked. "Please. Take your time. Be sure. This is a matter of some urgency."

Gail shook her head. "Sorry, but I'll keep my eye out for her, not that it's likely to do much good inside this costume."

"Thanks." Giles turned to leave.