It was nearing the end of winter in Cakelandia. The cream was beginning to thaw in patches on the wide open grassy plains the chomp rode across. Fresh candy grass rose up to reach for the sun through icy slushy cream, providing ample enough nourishment for Floof.

The chomp had taken care to avoid the village neighboring the one where he had fought the wedding cake. He wanted to stay away from the noise of civilization for a while, preferring the pristine solitude of the wilderness to mull things over. He lived off the land, foraging for choconut berries or hunting for pound cake.

The patoot was pretty low maintenance, only grazing every couple of days or so and requiring liquid cream around once per day. But no one had warned him about this - patoots had pretty nasty smelling poots.

"Bad girl", said the chomp, wrinkling his nose in disgust as he rode north, the sun rising in the east, bathing him and Floof in light on one side and shadow on the other.

Floof meowed in protest. She was trying to say she hadn't done it.

But if she hadn't done it, then who had? Patoots were simple innocent creatures - they lacked the cunning to lie.

The odor was stronger now - it smelt like the vilest poot in Cakelandia.

The chomp scanned his surroundings. There was nowhere to hide on the plains - he could see for miles in every direction.

Suddenly, Floof yowled, and the rider and his patoot found themselves plunging into an icy cold liquid. It had looked like just another patch of melting cream on the ground, but was apparently an ice-cream pond thawing out in the spring.

The pond was deep, and the struggling panicking patoot could not swim.

They were sinking...