Muted Mayhem and Merrymaking

Previously

…He picked up his trowel, brushed off the excess mud, and tucked it back into his bag. The Giggle Gem, he suspected, was proving to be more elusive than anyone had imagined. And perhaps, just perhaps, the real adventure wasn't about finding a sparkly object, but about surviving the mud pits along the way. He dusted off his trousers, gave Bartholomew Junior a small nod of farewell, and continued on his own, considerably less muddy, path.