"What's what?" asked Mr Mouse. "Can't see anything!"
"Down there!" said Wizzie, panting with excitement, his big pink tongue hanging out. "In the bottom left hand corner!"
He was right! In the bottom right hand corner where all the icons were lined up on the Taskbar for things like Norton Security and the printer, was another icon. And it looked like nothing Dot had ever seen before.
It was a simple child's face - the kind of thing you might draw in class when you were bored, provided your teacher wasn't standing behind you of course...
But it was a face in pain, the eyes tight shout and the mouth turned down as if it was ready to start crying, and two hands on either side of the face as if it was trying not to hear something.
It reminded Dot a bit of that painting by the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch. The one that was stolen. The one with the lady standing on a bridge with her mouth open, while all around her the colours in the painting swirled and twisted, as if the sky itself was hearing her and sharing her pain.
What was it called... oh yes, 'The Scream'. It was spooky. She remembered the first time she saw it, she hadn't been able to get it out of her mind for ages. Until her Dad had said it reminded him of how her Mum had been when Wizzie stole the Sunday joint just before lunch once! That had made her giggle and feel lots better!
But this was like before. Only it wasn't spooky. It was sad.
Then the little face changed colour. It had been pale green... now it was kind of yellow... and then, as the three friends watched, it turned blue.
"Dot!" said Mr Mouse in his strictest voice. "Have you been answering those pop-up adverts again? Have you got us spammed?"
"No... no... " said Dot, staring at the little face. It had gone pink now, and was starting to turn a pale orange. She was sure it had something to do with what she'd seen, the two white-robed children pleading for her help.
"Anyway" said Wiz "We've got a programme to help us deal with that, haven't we?"
"Mmm" said Mr Mouse. "Some of them still get through, though. These computer guys are totally clever! Remember Xan?" *
"HE wouldn't do anything like that!" said Dot. The little face had now gone grey. It looked sadder than ever. "He's nice!" Then she gasped. A little tear had rolled down the cheek of the sad face. And as it dropped off the edge of the screen, she was sure she heard a little "Plink!"
She swung round. "I think this is something to do with those two children I saw!" she said. "And I think we should net-voyage and go and find out!"
"Now hang on a minute there" said Mr Mouse, suddenly not looking so cool and sassy. "We don't know what we could be getting into!"
"We never do!" said Dot. "But we must help - we've just go to! It's our duty!"
"But... but... " went Mr Mouse. "How would we know where to go?
"Easy!" said Wizzie, shaking his head so his big silky ears flopped about. "We just click on that icon, there!" Then he peered closely at the screen, and gave his warning bark, making Dot and Mr Mouse jump.
"But we'd better be quick!" he said. "Look! It's fading!"
And it was!!
*Xan - see Dot and Lonely Darren.
