Flat Stanley's Worldwide Adventures #11 (6 page)

“Say
au revoir
,” Stanley growled. He swung harder. With a squeak, the remaining two suction cups came undone.

“Nooooo!” cried the thief as they began to fall. Stanley swung up toward the ceiling as the thief fell down. He hooked his feet around the thief's shoulders. In midair, Stanley's body ballooned upward like a parachute, holding the thief beneath him.

They landed gently, with the
Mona Lisa
unharmed.

“You are under arrest!” Agent Lunette immediately cut the
Mona Lisa
from the thief's back and handed the painting to one of the officers. Then he pulled the thief's hands behind them and handcuffed them. Finally he pulled off the mask . . . and a short crop of dark hair spilled out.

Stanley sucked in a breath. “It's M-Madame Sévère!” he stammered. “She's a teacher at L'école d'Art!”

“As I tell my pupils,” Madame Sévère said coldly, “the only way to paint like the masters . . . is to steal from them. My plan was perfect.”

“No,” Stanley replied. “Your plan fell
flat
.”

All the museum visitors burst into applause as the officer led Madame Sévère away. Agent Lunette slapped Stanley on the back. “You have done it, Monsieur Lambchop! How can we ever repay you?”

Stanley thought for a moment. “There is one thing I'd like to do before I leave Paris.”

Crêpe Stanley

Aunt Simone chose the restaurant for dinner: She said it was one of the finest in Paris. She wore a red dress to match her red lips and hair, and Agent Lunette was dressed in his best uniform, with medals pinned to his chest. Stanley had on a white shirt and a tie. When Etoile arrived, her dark hair was pulled back off her face. Her blue eyes sparkled in the candlelight.

While Aunt Simone and Agent Lunette talked to each other in French, Stanley leaned toward Etoile.

“Sorry I left you at the Eiffel Tower,” he told her.

“I
knew
you weren't just visiting,” Etoile said with a smile.

“Are you upset about your teacher?” asked Stanley.

Etoile's face darkened. “Madame made us copy masterpieces so she could have something to hang on the walls after she stole the originals. From now on, I will create my own masterpieces. Maybe one day they will hang in the Louvre.”

“I hung in the Louvre for two whole days,” said Stanley. “It's not as glamorous as it looks.”

Etoile laughed.

Their meal was served, and Stanley remembered what his aunt had said when he first arrived: “This is France. Everything is delicious.” He couldn't agree more. The beef Bourguignonne was rich and full-bodied, just like the province of Burgundy where Aunt Simone said it was a specialty. They agreed that the Camembert cheese tasted like the fields in the town of Camembert. There was cassoulet stew from Toulouse filled with beans and meat that made Stanley feel as if he were by a fireplace in a country castle.

“This is the finest meal I have ever had,” Agent Lunette said. He looked into Aunt Simone's eyes. “And it is only partly because of the food.”

Aunt Simone waved him away, but Stanley noticed her blushing. “Oh, Pierre, you are such a romantic!”

Stanley smiled. Just then the waiter appeared with the chef. “Monsieur Lambchop,” he said, “the chef has something special for you.”

Stanley looked up and nearly fell out of his chair. “No!” he cried. In his panic, he leaped up onto the table, grabbed a fork, and brandished it in front of him.

“Stanley, what's wrong?” cried Aunt Simone.

“The chef!” Stanley declared. “He's the one who chased me across Mexico, trying to steal La Abuela's secret!”

Chef Lillou held out his palms and shook his head.
“Non! Non! S'il vous plaît
,” he pleaded. “Please. I am not the man I was. I was wrong. I want to apologize.”

“You— What?” Stanley said, surprised.

“I have dreamed of seeing you again. I am glad you stopped me in Mexico. There was a missing ingredient in my life. I thought it was La Abuela's secret, but I was a fool. It was only when I came back to Paris that I found what was missing. It was
amour
—love. Everything changed when I found my true love.
I
changed.”

Suddenly the hostess of the restaurant, a plump woman with a warm smile, appeared and wrapped her arms around the chef.

“L'amour
changes everything,” she said.

Stanley didn't know what to say. Meanwhile, Agent Lunette and Aunt Simone were staring dreamily into each other's eyes.

“Oui
,” Aunt Simone said lightly.
“L'amour
changes everything.”

“Oui
,” Agent Lunette agreed. He took her hands and held them to his cheek.

Etoile wrinkled her nose at Stanley. “Maybe you should get down off the table now,” she whispered.

Stanley thought that was a good idea, so he did.

The waiter wheeled over a silver platter. “I have created a new dish,”

Chef Lillou announced. “All over the world, Crêpe Suzette is known as one of the great French desserts. But I have made something new. Something
magnifique.
It is called Crêpe Stanley!” The waiter lifted the silver dome off the platter with a flourish, and everyone oohed and ahhed.

Stanley and Etoile were finally full after they'd each eaten eight entire Crêpe Stanleys.

“My compliments to the chef!” Stanley told Chef Lillou, shaking his hand. “Can I take some home for my brother, Arthur, too?”

Au Revoir

Etoile and Stanley stood together beneath the Arc de Triomphe, a giant monument shaped like an arch in the center of the city. The lights of Paris twinkled around them.

“I feel so small standing here,” said Etoile.

“I feel flat,” said Stanley, “like usual.”

Etoile laughed. “Will you write me?” she asked.

Stanley nodded. Then he said, “Maybe one day I can come visit by airmail.”

“I hope so,” said Etoile.

Neither of them said anything for a long time.

“It's time for me to go,” Stanley said at last.
“Au revoir
, Etoile.”

“Au revoir
, Stanley.”

She turned to walk away—and then she spun around and gave Stanley a hug and a kiss on the cheek. And in that moment, the evening breeze almost blew him away.