Are faeries playing with my car keys?

For some time I've harbored a sneaking suspicion that, on occasion, some of my possessions will go off and have adventures without me.

I first began to consider this possibility at festivals like FSG and Starwood, when lost items would suddenly re-appear in places I was sure had already been searched.

Ok, fine. Between the consciousness-altering effects of staying up all night at the bonfire, and the generally magickal atmosphere at these events, perhaps one should be willing to let one's perception of reality warp a bit around the edges without complaint.

But out here in the suburbs, on a bright and sunny Labor Day weekend? That's another matter.

Wednesday, as I have noted, I went over to the local middle school for a little wallball session. While running around the court, I remember taking my keys out of my pocket and putting them on the ground. Later that evening, back home and searching unsuccessfully for said keys, I began to worry that I had left them there. Went back over for a look - no keys.

Keep in mind that this was only a few hours later, and that it was dark when I finished my wallball session. But there are lit basketball courts there, so it's not impossible that someone could have come by and picked them up. I put a note up by the court with my phone number.

Thursday morning I visited the school office to check if anyone had found them. Nope. No called either. Thursday night I walked Piccolo over by the school, as I often do, and checked back around the court. No keys.

Yesterday afternoon I put a few more signs up around the school area, this time with mention of a $10 reward. Saw a few kids on the basketball court, asked if they'd seen any keys, no luck. Late last night I walked Chewbacca over by the school...no calls, no keys.

This afternoon, around 4 pm, I went back over to the school for another wallball session. Sitting on the court, right by the wall, plain as day, were my keys.

I can see two mundane explanations:

1. They were there the whole time. This requires us to believe not only that I missed seeing them multiple times, but that the kids at the court on Friday missed seeing them also, and that everyone who passed by either didn't see them, or saw them and took no action in spite of the note (including the fact that a reward was promised).
2. Someone picked them up during that window of a few hours Wednesday night, then returned them to the court sometime between about 1 am and 4 pm today - and ignored the notes I posted, one of which was at the only entrance to the court and which promised an easy $10.

Skeptics (and I count myself one, at least in general terms) like to say that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. In this case, I'm not sure which is the more extraordinary claim: that some human being driven by motives beyond my ken picked up and returned my keys, or that the fay folk are responsible.