Camping Out

By

Chris Thompson

One Saturday afternoon, I asked my mom if I could go on a camp out with my friends and she said, “Sure, why not! Just get your camping things together.”  I got the tent and some sleeping bags and went out to my school at Tuckahoe Elementary. I went to the back and went past the trailers.

When I put up my tent, I went back home and called my friends. Once I had done that, I waited at my house for them to come. When they came, we went to the campground and ate the food I had packed. When we were done, we went into my tent and one of my friends started to tell a scary story.  I thought it was extremely stupid until he shouted boo! Then I screamed! Everyone else started to laugh, but I did not think it was funny. When he was done telling his story, we got into our sleeping bags and went to sleep.

I woke up in the middle of the night to find that I had a headache along with everyone else. I went outside and looked at the bag we packed. We had left it outside and I looked inside and it was empty. I yelled, “Who stole everything?” Nobody was able to explain it.  At first, I thought one of my friends was playing a trick on me, and I was seething mad.  However, I remembered that a guy had been breaking into houses and stealing expensive items recently in the neighborhood. We quickly packed up our sleeping bags and tents and ran to my house.  We did not want the thief to return with us there. I told my mom that everything had been stolen.  She started to laugh and I could not understand why. She said my dad just came there and took everything to help us pack up, so we would not have to spend too much time doing it in the morning. I said, “Hey mom, next time we have a campout, tell dad not to take anything, so we will not be so scared!”

Professor Poe

By

Abby Peizer

“Kiki Franchaw! Where are you Kiki Franchaw?!” Aunt Caroll shouted. “Bloody girls in the woods again,” she murmured.

        “Run!” Kiki told herself, “run!” Kiki ran and ran until she ran so far she had no idea what she was getting herself into. Suddenly, she tripped on a root and went spinning through the air, and the first thing that hit a rock was her head. She soon fainted off into a deep sleep.

        Days past and she was still in a deep sleep. However, a miracle happened! A magnificent creature showed up at her feet. He was a short little fellow, with stubby legs, crooked spectacles, a long white beard, and he had a colorful suit on.

       “Humph. Is she just going to lay their perishing on the ground like a fool?” He said in disgust. He took his hand and magically waved it over her head. Soon her eyes started opening and she became conscious. However, she was too weak to care what was happening. The creature took Kiki to his home, so she could be cared for. They arrived there at the home were Kiki was taken in by the fireplace with a blanket wrapped around her small body. The house had no walls, so it was an outdoor house! Half of it was brick and the other half was soil! Their were trees all over the house and a big round table taking up almost half of it. A round arch was the doorway with plants growing around it.

          “Where am I? Who are you?” Kiki asked weakly with her eyes only slightly open. The man straightened his upper body and got ready to answer the question.

          “I am Professor Rudgeyarth Poe Cooper, but you just call me Professor Poe. I am a resident of Millbary Forest, and you need to stay with me until your well.”

          “Why am I here though?” Kiki asked.

          “It is a long story. I’ll have to cut to the chase. Have you ever thought you were different? Well, you are. You have powers that nobody else has. Blood that is fit for a crown.” Professor Poe explained. Kiki was wide-eyed and about to topple over laughing, then, boom! She toppled over like a rock bursting out with laughter.

          “You believe in that kind of stuff?” Kiki asked.

          “Yes Kiki Elizabeth Franchaw I have some of that stuff. Have you ever wondered about your parents? You are the upcoming Fairy Princess! Your mother is the princess right now and is about to become the Queen! She sent me to bring you to her!”

          “Prove it!” Kiki snapped. Professor Poe dug through sand and pulled out a piece of paper with writing on it. He read it out loud. “This is the child of Princess Lily. She is 9 ½ ounces, 17 inches, and was born on December 1, 1996.”

          There was silence for a minute until Kiki finally asked, “Can we go and see her?”

          “Yes in fact we can go and see her now.” So, they gathered food and water and put it all in a bundle to start their journey. They climbed over mountains, through valleys, and around lakes until they finally arrived at Saphira Castle, where Princess Lily lived.

          “We’re here!” said Professor Poe. Kiki ran up to the monstrous glass doors and flung them open and called out, “Princess Lily!” Everything was silent until she heard the pitter-patter of little feet hitting the glass stairs. A small figure appeared on the steps. She was dainty and looked as if you pushed her she would fall and break.

          Unexpectedly, Kiki ran and flew her arms around her and hugged her. Tears flew from Kiki’s eyes.

            “Kiki?” The lady whispered into her ear.

            “Yes, yes, yes it’s me, your daughter!”

            They both lived happily ever after in Saphira Castle.   

The Best Day Ever

By

Edmund Pendleton

Today, I was very excited because my family was going camping. We had already packed the supplies we needed last night. When I went downstairs, my parents and sister were eating breakfast, so I fixed my own breakfast. Once we were done eating, we left for the camping grounds. We drove over hills and past streams until we finally got to the forest where the camping ground was.

        Once we finished unpacking our things, we went on a hike. After awhile, our legs got tired, so we went to the lake and rented a canoe. We also went fishing while we were in the canoe, and I caught a fish that was one foot long! After that, we headed back to our camping site to get some lunch.

        Next, we went to the nature center in the camping grounds. They had all kinds of snakes in cages there. They also had a mother box turtle and her new baby. Then, we went back to our tents to take a nap because my parents were tired. Once my parents woke up, it was 6:00! So we decided to have dinner. Next, we made a fire hole and made a fire. After that, we roasted marshmallows to make Smores.  Then, we told spooky ghost stories until we fell asleep.  It was really the best day ever!

The Election

By

Eli Locke

 Today was the big day. It was the final day of the Presidential Election. As it has been practiced for many years, the way of finding the President of the United Tess of Tuckahoe (UTT) was the same.

 I am the son of one of the candidates, Bob Joe Georgeson. My family lives in a mansion on top of the stream above the waterfall. I was relaxing one day when I heard the doorbell ring. I opened the door, and saw it was the airplane chaperone ready to take us to Tess in D.C.

 It was a short flight. Once we got there, we walked over to the arena. Here is how the picking works. All six candidates stand on Tess’ neck. In five minutes, the first rock is dropped. The referee drops the rock right in front of Tess’ neck, which makes the neck constrict. This is done until one candidate is left standing and that person becomes the new President.

Suddenly, the first rock was dropped. Nothing happened until Adam Marran Josh fell. Then, John Marcus Elliot made a funny face at Jack Larry Ed, who charged at him. He jumped, grabbed John Marcus Elliot in the air, and they both flew off the neck and into the water. “There are three down and three to go,” my dad shouted at me. I gave him thumbs up back. The next rock was dropped, but none of the three candidates flinched. Then, Tess began moving. She made a sharp turn and went under the bridge, which was pitched black. Then I heard a loud PLOP! Next thing you know, there’s light again and Alex Michael Harrison was gone. Now, it was down to the last two candidates, Cecil Brad Arnold and my dad. Nobody wanted Cecil to win.  He was expected to raise taxes and that worried many people.

Suddenly, a fish came out of the water and slapped Cecil Brad Arnold off Tess with his tail and my dad was the new President. Hopefully, he can help the United Tess of Tuckahoe become a better place for all of the citizens.

One day, my brother and I were playing in the Colonial Village at Tuckahoe Elementary when we tripped over a gigantic rock, and we were knocked into a well.  When we woke up, there were three strange beings looking at us.  “We are the well-dwellers,” they said. 

They were strange creatures.  They resembled mushrooms.  They had three eyes, two arms, and six roots that looked like their legs. 

They took our hands and led us throughout the caves.  As we got deeper into the cave, we entered a large room and there in a large chair was Merlin the Wizard of Quests.  “I have a task for you,” he said. “You must find a magic gem.  This gem will allow you freedom from this cave.”  Merlin gave us a map and we were off on our way. 

On our journey, we came across a monster and a well.  The map said to feed the monster water from the well using a stick and a bucket.  It was pretty hard because the monster kept trying to bite us.  Then, my brother tilted the bucket in such a way that the water fell into the monster’s mouth.  The moment that happened, a magical door opened.  Once the door opened, we moved on.   

Mr. Mole

By

Josh Greifenberger

  Mr. Mole was walking through Mole Town one day when he saw a poster.  The poster read:

The Mole Dragon Is Back

Whoever slays the Mole Dragon will receive a great reward.

            Mr. Mole was a little scared but after some thought decided that he would be the one to slay the Mole Dragon. First, Mr. Mole went to the blacksmith.  There he bought some armor.  Then, Mr. Mole went back to his tunnel to get his sword and some food.

            The following morning, Mr. Mole started his hunt for the Mole Dragon.  He checked the Coliseum first.  There he found the Mole Dragon outside of his lair.  It was if he knew Mr. Mole was coming for him.  Mr. Mole started his attack right away.  Surprisingly, the fight only lasted three minutes.  Mr. Mole got lucky you could say.  He had slain the dragon quickly and went back to Mole Town to get his reward.

Remember? You promised…

By

Claire Young

            Sarah was an unhappy child. She loved trees, nature, and writing. If she didn’t need paper to write on, Sarah would not buy anything that was made out of wood. She hated the fact that people cut down trees. Sarah also hated the fact that her father, a wealthy business man, owned a logging company. She and her father hardly talked because they were mad at each other. She hated logging, and he hated protesters. Little did Sarah know that one day she would follow in his footsteps.

            Acorn was a squirrel. She loved running and jumping, but most of all, talking. She could go on and on for hours talking about acorns. She was named Acorn for her fascination with acorns.

            Acorn lived in a huge apple tree named Apple. Apple was her best friend because Apple loved to listen and observe everything that went on in the forest. If anything happened, Apple was sure to know.

         So one spring day after hibernation, Acorn yawned and leaned over to talk to Apple. Apple was bursting with news. She couldn’t wait to tell Acorn about the visitor. 

         “Acorn, you missed everything!” Apple blurted out.

            “A girl with a notebook has visited the forest everyday since you took your nap.” Acorn was still drowsy, but at the sound of human beings, her ears pricked up.

           “What did she look like? Did she have braids? Or a huge nose? Was she ugly? Or not?” Acorn asked suspiciously.

   Acorn wasn’t a big fan of humans because a couple years back, one had thrown a stick at her, and the stick hit its mark.

           “I don’t know! I don’t have eyes you know! I’m not a potato!” Apple snapped back.

           Sarah liked to walk in the woods. When she was in the forest, she always got good ideas. She had just waltzed into her favorite spot, when she saw a squirrel looking right at her! She fell down in surprise, and leaned against a tree to catch her breath. Apple saw the girl leaning against her and chuckled.  She startled Sarah, but didn’t seem to notice.

          “Who are you?” Sarah whispered.

          Apple chuckled and boomed, “I am Apple. I live in this clearing. I protect the younger trees.”

          Acorn nearly fell over with laughter. Then, she asked, “What are you doing? Are you trying to fool this little girl? I thought that you weren’t very convincing, myself. Well, we ought to punish you for deceiving someone smaller than yourself. Then again, she’s bigger than I am, so she isn’t that small.”

 Sarah felt funny when Apple said, “I protect the younger trees.” No one could protect the trees now. Her father had bought the surrounding acres of land. Now, all these trees were toast. She wished that she could help. However, Sarah had another matter on her mind.

“I know that you can talk,” Sarah began, but Acorn cut her off.

“No need to say that now. Finish that sentence when you don’t believe. I don’t want to hear it. You’re too bothersome.” Acorn interrupted.

Apple answered Sarah’s questions. “Promise to never make the mistake of killing a forest, and you can finish that sentence.”

“I promise” Sarah said all but unwillingly. “But why do I need to …”

“Welcome,” Apple cut in, “to the forest.” Then, all the animals that had been hiding jumped out. The clearing was now filled with life. “Sarah, you can hear us because you believe. Whenever you forget and you need to remember your promise, you will find yourself saying “I can hear you, because I believe.” Remember your promise, Sarah.”

Ten years later, Sarah followed in her father’s footsteps and accepted the job that he gave her as a logger. She had forgotten her promise.

On Sarah’s first day as a logger, she was told to cut down a forest so some buildings could be built. She had no problem with that. Sarah had changed a lot since the day when she first met Apple and Acorn.

When Sarah walked back into the clearing, she remembered a little squirrel who talked a lot. How could a squirrel talk? Sarah asked herself. Well, she just had to get this forest cut down. That wouldn’t be so hard. Sarah grabbed her axe and started toward a huge tree. Then Sarah heard a little word in the back of her head that kept repeating itself. That word was “Believe”.

What did she need to believe in? Success? Power? Money? Health? When had she heard that word before? In her childhood, her mother had always said to believe in whatever she wanted to believe in. She had believed in talking animals as a child. That seemed so silly now. However, Sarah concentrated on talking animals.

Then, the squirrel on a branch of the tall tree looked down at her. Sarah now remembered everything.

“I can hear you because I believe.” There, she said it. What was going to happen now? The squirrel started to talk.

“Sarah, I’ve missed you! Do you remember me? My name is Acorn. I told you to not cut trees. What are you doing with that axe? Oh no! Murder! Treason! Yes, treason’s the right word. When you were younger, you promised to not cut down trees!” the squirrel was definitely Acorn.

So the tree had to be Apple. What was she doing?  She was cutting down something that used to be her friend. Without thinking, Sarah dropped her axe and started climbing Apple. She climbed until she found the perfect spot to rest. Sarah stayed there for five months until her father agreed to protect the forest. She had helped the forest that her father wanted to cut down.

Sarah quit the logging industry for good. Instead, she became a children’s book writer. She wrote about trees and the importance of forests. She had realized her mistakes and fixed them.

The Fairy Bench

By

Tabitha Devens

Every time Malinda went to the park, everything seemed to come to life. For instance, whenever she sat on the bench, she imagined fairies flying around her. Somehow, her imagination used to come to life. From the tall trees that hover over the bench to the bugs and animals below it, fairies play and talk when no one was there.

Sometimes, when Malinda sits on the concrete bench, she hears tiny voices floating around. These voices made Malinda wonder. What is that? Where is it coming from? Who is saying that? She asked herself. But one day, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small shadow with wings. At first, she thought it was a bird. Then, she turned around and saw that it wasn’t a bird but a fairy! She gasped and put on her I think I’m going to faint look. The fairy looked at her, and then the berry Malinda picked.  She dropped the berry out of excitement.     

Later that day, Malinda and Rose Ann, the fairy, became friends. Rose Ann told Malinda the story of the magical bench she was sitting on earlier. Whenever a chosen girl sits on the bench, instantly, a fairy appears.

Before Malinda went to bed that night, she tried to remember the feel of the concrete bench. She wanted to do this because the fairy told her that after she told the story, Malinda can never come back. She tried to remember the smell of the blueberries that had fallen from a bush next to the bench.

When Malinda grew up, she had kids of her own and she told them the same story the fairy told her. Then her kids went to the bench and the same thing happened to them. When the kids grew up, they had kids of their own, and they told the story that their mom told them. The same story that the fairy told to Malinda got passed down for generations to generations.

A Great Hero

By

Kirsten Burke

It was 3:00 on a Thursday, a storm was coming, war was closing in, and all of the soldiers were in their cabins gathering with their families. When suddenly, the soldiers could hear gun shots and stepped out of their cabins to look. They saw the Redcoats coming and all of the men grabbed their guns and ran outside and stood on their side of the field. One of the men, named Joseph, was the leader of the troops and he stood wherever he wanted. He stood right in the front, but his soldiers pleaded with him to stand in the back, so he wouldn’t get shot.  Joseph would not listen.  He was truly an American hero who protected his soldiers.

The Redcoats fired their rifles and the person who got shot was Joseph. No one noticed that the bullet hit Joseph until he fell to the ground. All the women and children were watching from a distance and Joseph’s wife saw him on the ground and started crying. After the battle finished, all the women went out to see where their husbands were. Mary, the wife, ran to Joseph, and the son picked him up and brought him in the cabin and put him on the bed.

He was dying. Joseph ate his dinner very slowly and went to bed.  Would he have enough strength to waken the next morning? At 9:00 A.M., the family was having breakfast and they went to the room Joseph was in.  They thought he was sleeping, but when they tried to wake him up, he didn’t.  Mary checked his pulse. She felt it and there was none. They found out that he gracefully died in his sleep. All the troops came to his funeral and said their goodbyes to Joseph. After a while, everyone was still sad but went on with their lives.  However, no one ever forgot about their hero. 

The Americans went on to win the Revolution against the British.  Many of Joseph’s men dedicated their victory to him.

Waterfall

By

Alex Hirschberg

I ran down the hill to my tent.  I was camping at one of my favorite campsites.  Trees surrounded my tent and made me feel like an ant on a sidewalk.  I got into my one person tent and rested.  I started reviewing what I wanted to do tomorrow.  My mind kept going back to the trail I wanted to follow.  I had never been on it before.  I started to close my eyes.  I soon dropped into a deep sleep.

       The next morning, I awoke to the sound of an eagle.  I remembered the trail.  I ate my breakfast quickly and ran down to where the trail started.  I walked along it while listening to the birds singing and inhaling the fresh forest air.  I was getting thirsty.  I reached into my backpack.  My water bottle wasn’t there. I had forgotten it in my hurry to get on the trail.  I listened very closely.  There was a faint sound of gushing water.  I knew going off the trail was risky, but I decided to do it anyway.  Awhile later, I found the stream.  I cupped my hands and lifted water to my lips.  It was refreshing.  I decided to follow it a little down stream.  After I followed it for awhile, I heard the faint but distinct sound of water hitting rocks.  As I followed the stream farther, the sound got louder.  Finally, I found the source of the noise.  It was a gigantic cascading waterfall!  I looked at the park map.  All the waterfalls in the park were marked except this one.  I pulled out my cell phone and called the park office.  I told the operator I had discovered a new waterfall and they should send someone over right away.  Half an hour later, I saw a man in the distance.   He had a camera over one shoulder and a GPS in his hand.  As soon as he got to where I was, he turned around.  He was in awe.  He pulled out his camera and started taking pictures from every angle.  Then he pulled out a walkie-talkie and radioed the park office to confirm there really was a waterfall.

       The next day I scanned the newspaper.  The headline was “PARK VISITOR DISCOVERS A NEW WATERFALL”.  I smiled.  I hoped they would make a path to it so everyone could enjoy it.

The Tree in the Park

By

Robert Sondheim

Everyday I go outside to the tree in the park. This is where I do lots of things. One thing I do here is homework. It is a nice, quiet, and peaceful place to read and think. Sometimes after I finish my homework, I take a ride down the slide right next to the tree.

Another thing I enjoy doing by the tree is observing. I usually observe what people do. Once I saw a woman walking a kid on a leash, and I said, “Boy I’m glad I’m not that kid”. Another thing I saw there once was a child swinging, and he fell forward and smashed his face in the sand. It is fun observing what some people do because it makes me laugh.

Once I’m done with my homework, and after observe, I usually get pretty tired. The last thing I usually do at the tree is take a nap. I sleep for about thirty minutes. After I sleep for about half an hour, I walk back home to have dinner.  I like to think that going to the tree in the park is a way for me to relax after a long day at school.

The Wheel

By

Caitria Boomsma

Papa stretched out as he read his morning paper. “What’s that?” I asked pointing to the picture of shaggy dressed rebels.

He paused for a moment. “Bad News Jamie,” he snarled. “This picture means we have to move to Maryland.”

“What?” I screamed. “We can’t move to Maryland. I won’t do it! I just won’t do it! THIS IS MY HOME!” I hated how my father stayed so calm. He always does that.  My face was red and almost in tears. We talked no further.

 I woke up in the morning and my mother and father were sitting on our old rotting table. I could tell they had news for me and I wasn’t going to like it. “Jamie we’re moving.” I knew that was exactly what they were going to say, yet I was still alarmed. “You probably don’t understand Jamie,” my mother argued. “But if we don’t move, we’ll all get killed.” I definitely wasn’t going to argue with her anymore. I could tell we were moving whether we liked it or not. I packed up all my belongings and helped with pa. It took us three days to pack. All my parents packed were food and clothes. I was amazed.

“We’re leaving tomorrow at six-thirty,” my father explained. “I hear the rebels are coming this way.”

We actually went at six-fifteen because we heard the rebels arguing a little ways down. We went about twenty feet without talking until papa broke the silence. “Last week, when I went down to visit old Uncle Mike, I noticed the wheel was loose. I screwed it back on but it won’t last for the whole trip.  Mama nodded but seemed not to care. She lives in the moment you know. That means, as long as the wheel is on at the moment, she doesn’t care. So we moved on and passed the northern tip of Virginia. It was pretty as for trees, but you wouldn’t get to see many roses around here. I kept thinking to myself how we were going to get to Maryland. It seemed so far away. It almost seemed impossible. I opened my mouth to complain but remembered that no one person was in the mood for my complaining. Nobody ever does. Especially, when it was a matter you couldn’t resolve.

 Everything was going according to plan until we hit a muddy creek. “How will we get through?” my mother asked.

“Well,” my father thought. “There certainly is no time to lose.”

“Okay,” my mother mumbled helplessly. We went through. Our horses definitely didn’t want to go.  They made it through, however.  It was very shallow in certain parts, so we picked a shallow part. My pa guided the horses, and suddenly, we came to a halt. I assumed he was just stopping to look at something, but he wasn’t. He wasn’t the one stopping. Sam, our horse, had just hit a boulder.

         “Why is this here?” my father asked. 

“Well why do you think we would know?” my mother shot back at him.

“Well,” my father said wiping his hands, “All we need to know is that WE ARE STUCK!”

“No, not technically,” I said. “Sam won’t move with that boulder there.” I pointed. Sam was on the right side of the wagon and so was the boulder.  

“Go around it you dumb horse!” my father yelled at him. Now my father was getting mad.

“Paul!” And so was my mother.

“Just keep going Sam!” my father said calming down.  I heard a screech. The good news was that we were out. The bad news was that the wheel had fallen off.  We couldn’t continue our journey without a wheel. It had gotten wedged deep between the boulder and another rock we hadn’t seen. My mother dove in inadvisably and grabbed hold of the wheel and struggled to get it but needed some air and jumped to the surface. She told herself she wasn’t going to do that again. So she went under one more time and successfully loosened the wheel. While she was tugging, she hit her head on the boulder, and since it was such muddy water, we couldn’t tell whether she was still attempting to untangle it or whether she had drowned. My father took no chances, but he was too late. My mother had died. We grieved for a half hour until finally I stopped. “Papa,” I sobbed. “We better get going or we will all be dead if the rebels catch us.”

         We managed to use the wagon without the wheel which was stupid of us since we could have just taken the wheel out but we were too sad that the wheel was the reason my mother had died. We went ten times as slow but finally made it to our destination.

Some people had found the wheel but had found no use for it.  They sold it at an auction. A rich fellow strolled over and found the wheel, which looked like a souvenir to his eyes. He bought the wheel and put it by his flower vase in his mansion. This rich fellow had everything he needed except for a house cleaner.

         Luckily, pa and I found this fellow. “Well if you clean this house for nine months then you may have this wheel,” he said after we explained how we lost it. I didn’t think it was a good deal. We cleaned for the nine months and bonded with the man. He didn’t want us to leave and in his haste to keep us there he offered us to live with him. We accepted and we settled down for a nice cup of hot chocolate. 

            We took the wheel and put part of it into the ground next to my mother’s grave.  It was a sad day for us, but we all knew that she would be pleased that we were all alive and living happily.  

The Scarecrow

By

Timothy Aldinger

One early Saturday morning, my father and I were going to plant corn. My father sent me to go make a scarecrow.  I wanted to make a good scarecrow so it would last a long time, so I made him out of steel and straw.  After the scarecrow was done, I stuck him right in the center of the cornfield. After that, I went to bed for some much needed rest.

When I woke up, I grabbed some breakfast and just relaxed throughout the Saturday day.  It was an unusually warm evening. That night, I heard some rustling in the cornfield. I figured it was just some raccoons, so I did not worry about it.

Early Sunday morning, my father and I went to church, so I didn’t have time to check on my scarecrow. When we got back, my scarecrow was wearing a hat. I had not put a hat on him. 

The same type of thing happened in the fall, winter, and spring. In the fall, I found him with a pair of overalls, in the winter with my father’s overcoat, and in the spring, the scarecrow had a pair of gloves.

The night before it was to become summer again, our scarecrow vanished.  In the morning, we saw a stranger with a hat, some overalls, an overcoat, and a pair of gloves. After a day or two, the man had a house and a cornfield. Late that night, I looked at his house and the lights were off, but I saw someone standing in the middle of that cornfield looking at the stars just like my scarecrow had.  I knew that the man must have taken my scarecrow. 

I approached the house and a stranger came up beside me.  He was asking me why I was here.  I told him that the scarecrow out there was mine and that whoever lives here must have taken him a few days ago.  The stranger then told me that the owner of this house died two months ago and that there was nobody living here.  This led to one simple question.  Could the scarecrow I made actually be alive? 

The Well

By

Matthew Giarusso

          Long ago, there was a well in the town of Desert.  Every time somebody tried to get some water from the well, they would get goo instead.  Not just any goo, this goo could only come from aliens!  At least, this is what Frank believed. 

Frank was a boy who once lived in Desert.  His family got water from the well each morning.  It was one of Frank’s chores. 

One day, he was getting water form the well when an alien popped out of the bucket and said, “Give me your cheese!” Frank yelled in terror as he ran faster than a jack rabbit to his house and locked the door behind him. Frank then blocked the door with a table.  He locked all the windows and got his paintball gun.  Finally, he set up a base in the corner of the kitchen right next to the refrigerator.

Suddenly, Frank saw a beam of light appear and there was the alien!  “Yaaaaa! Eat paint!” yelled Frank. 

“Eat Laser!” shouted the alien.  Zap, Zap, Zap.  All of the sudden, Frank’s paint gun and table turned into cheese.  Realizing he had no chance to defeat the alien, he ran away.  Frank was running faster than a cheetah away from the enemy. 

Once he got outside, he saw a U.F.O. that fired a beam of light at his house and beamed up all of the cheese as well as the alien.  All of the sudden, the U.F.O. disappeared with the cheese!  Frank’s parents drove up and yelled, “We have more cheese!” 

“AAAAAAAAAAAA!” Frank screamed in terror!

The Lake

By

Miles Adair

One day, Bob was walking outside when he heard a strange noise. He went to where the noise was coming from. Soon he found his friend Mr. S’s house. “What are you doing?” asked Bob.

“I am building a boat and I think it is ready. Do you want to come out with me to test it out?” asked Mr. S.

“Sure,” said Bob.    

         They went out on the water and Mr. S fell asleep while Bob was fishing. Before Bob could realize what was happening, the boat started going towards some rocks and crashed into them. The boat started sinking and Mr. S woke up. “Hurry jump on that rock.”  Then the rock started moving.  It was actually a turtle.

“How do we get to shore?” asked Bob.

“We could ride this turtle,” said Mr. S, but the turtle went to an underwater cave.

“Hold your breath and follow me,” said Bob.

When they got into the cave, they spotted the turtle and both grabbed on to his neck.  The turtle instinctively took off and ended up swimming back to the point where Bob and Mr. S started.  They both thanked the turtle and were glad to be alive.

The Indian Camp

By

Katie Dawkins

Maria awoke to find herself lying in a tent. For a moment, she puzzled over where she was, but then she remembered. Maria was adopted, so she and her new parents were camping in the mountains to get to know each other better. 

When Maria got out of her sleeping bag, she saw her parents cooking breakfast. After filling herself with most of the eggs on her plate, Maria went exploring, promising not to go too far away.

        When she was slightly into the woods, Maria climbed a tree and looked around. Off in the distance, she saw a clearing with what looked like a fire pit in the middle of it. Maria climbed down the tree, and started walking in the direction of the camp.

When Maria reached the camp, she found it was surrounded by tall logs. She walked around the circle for awhile and finally found an entrance.

Maria stared at what seemed to be a deserted Indian camp. There were long, narrow houses made out of tree bark spread out around the camp. Maria looked in the houses and found an old doll and an arrow. She put the arrow down immediately, but kept the doll in her hand.

Regretting not finishing her eggs, Maria put the doll down, and headed back to her camp. After getting a snack, Maria went exploring again. This time she was looking for wildlife. She saw several squirrels, birds, and rabbits.

The next day, after eating all her breakfast, Maria went to the Indian camp again. Maria looked for the doll where she had dropped it, but it wasn’t there.

She thought an animal took it, which was a logical answer, but Maria felt like there might be another person visiting the camp. Maria looked around the camp for a long time, but instead of looking for objects, Maria was waiting to see if anyone would show up.

After awhile, Maria looked at her watch and went back to her camp for lunch. A couple of minutes later, her parents appeared from out of the woods. “Are you ready for lunch?” Her mom asked. Maria nodded.

“I thought we could just have sandwiches. Is that okay with you?” Another nod was the only reply.

 “Ham and cheese, right?” Maria’s dad said as he took them out of a bag.

After eating her sandwich, Maria went back to the Indian camp. When she entered the camp, Maria saw a girl about her own age sitting in the center.

Walking up behind her, Maria said “Hello?” The girl jumped to her feet and spun around.

“Who are you?” The girl asked roughly.

“My name’s Maria.” She said, advancing slowly towards the girl.

“Please don’t tell anyone I’m here. Please don’t tell.” Maria could tell the girl was scared.

Maria felt sorry for the girl so she said, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.” The girl’s face collapsed in relief.

“Is there anything I can bring you?” She asked.

Shamefully, the girl admitted. “Yes there is.”

“What?” Maria asked. Together, they made a list of things that she would bring tomorrow after breakfast.

When she got back to the campsite, Maria made a pile of the things on her list. Maria was making the pile now because her parents would be with her all the time until tomorrow.

After Maria had lunch with her parents, they went on a hike. Maria had so much fun.  She found it hard not to tell her parents about the girl. Maria managed to keep her mouth shut until her parents were asleep.

In the morning, Maria waited until her parents left, and then moved her pile into a bag. Dragging the bag behind her, Maria set off into the woods.

Again, the girl was sitting in the middle of the camp. “Hello.” Maria said as she walked up behind the girl. When the girl turned and smiled, she sat down next to her. “I don’t think you told me yesterday, what’s your name?”

“Sarah. I don’t know what my last name is though. My parents died when I was little and I lived at an orphanage. I was almost adopted by the most terrible family ever.” Maria was surprised the girl could talk so much. She assumed Sarah had run away from the orphanage to avoid being adopted by the terrible family.

After Sarah had shared so much, Maria felt like she should tell something about herself. “My parents died in a car crash last year and I just got adopted.”

Maria knew Sarah couldn’t stay out in the woods forever, but she was sure she wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.

“Sarah,” Maria said tentatively. “Do you think you would mind if my parents adopted you?” Maria asked. “She could talk to them tonight unless you say no.”

“Do you think they would want to?” Sarah seemed hopeful. Maria nodded.

“I’m almost sure they’d say yes.” Maria reassured her.

“But if they say no, they’ll probably take me back to the orphanage.” Sarah fretted.

         “Don’t worry.” Maria said. “I won’t tell them anything about you until I’m sure they wouldn’t mind adopting another kid.”

         Sarah reluctantly agreed to Maria’s plan. At dinner that night, Maria suggested adopting another child and when they agreed, she told them about Sarah.

         The next day, Maria and her parents went to the Indian camp to find Sarah and took her to the orphanage to adopt her. By the end of the week, Sarah was officially part of Maria’s family.

         Before they left the campsite, Maria went to the Indian camp one more time. She had expected this trip to be so boring, but it had been one of the most exciting things of her life. It was all because of the Indian camp.

The Bad Day of Evil Elvis

By

 Amelia Hayden

On a typical spring day, you can see millions of cars going back and forth along the local bridge. It might seem normal on the top, but it is very different underneath.  There is something that can only be seen with a fast eye.  It’s a TROLL! His name is Evil Elvis. He is very wicked, and he is Elvis Presley’s brother.

Why is he so evil you may ask?  Evil Elvis has always been jealous of his brother.  The good Elvis has always gotten all of the fame and fortune, and the Evil Elvis has only a home underneath the bridge to show for his life.

         Evil Elvis was one day watching his brother cross the bridge. He thought he could destroy him on his brother's big show night. He thought this because he knew his brother had to cross the bridge to get to his show.    

         By the time it was Elvis’ big show, Evil Elvis had already planned what he was going to do. He was going to blow up the bridge when his brother was on it.

At 9:09 P.M., his brother was driving across the bridge. Everybody heard a big BOOM! All the cars started to fall. Luckily, nobody was killed. "How did they all survive?" the Evil Elvis wondered.

         The amazing thing was the cars started to fly. How did the cars start to fly? Elvis Presley was a good luck charm for everyone. Evil Elvis did not know he was such a good luck charm.  You see, whenever the good Elvis is around people, no harm can come to them.  The Evil Elvis was beaten again by his brother.

         Elvis Presley got to his show on time. He sang twelve songs. They were amazing. Evil Elvis was angry at him so he set up his new plan. He was going to sing with his brother to try to make him sound bad.

         Evil Elvis never got the chance to sing with his brother.  However, Evil Elvis and Elvis Presley were able to communicate by just saying things in their minds. Evil Elvis didn’t care about his brother. Elvis Presley did. After the show, Elvis Presley went under the bridge to try to talk with his evil brother. Both Elvis’ became good friends because they chose to talk to each other rather than keeping their feelings locked inside.      

The Greatest Mouse Warrior

By

Ethan Bowman

Hello, John is my name, and my parent’s names are Mary and Bob.  We are all mice.  We used to live in a peaceful world, but everything changed when the moles attacked us. We tried to find a warrior strong enough to fight them but no luck.

One day, I was walking home to my family’s very expensive home inside of a cave. Unfortunately, my family spent most of their money on our home, so we did not have a lot left. I was very angry when my parents made me go on an adventure to get more money. I was mad because the only place to get more money was from the Mole Bank! I refused to go, but my parents made me go out of the cave, so I had no choice!

I hated the black dark moles. I will never forget when the moles took my grandmother.  I wish us mice had a warrior!

I went over to the old bank. It was very smelly with the stench of moles. When I walked to the counter no one was there! I wondered where everyone was. “Hello, Hello? Is anyone here?” I asked. I only saw one mole but he would not answer me.

        I went downtown to the other bank. Then suddenly, I saw a big crowd of mice! I ran over to the crowd. I saw a mouse worrier that looked like he was braver then anyone!

       His name was Kyle and he said that he would destroy the moles once and for all! He said that he would do it. He is supposed to do it! He hates the moles more then anyone I ever knew and he had a good reason.  They burned his home and killed his parents!  He wants to get revenge.

       Warrior Kyle went through the most dangerous route.  It was the shark trail!  It was dangerous because it was crawling with crocodiles and sea serpents.  Kyle managed to get through and was now at the Mole Headquarters.  The moles tried to stop him but it was no use.  He was just too strong for them.  The moles finally surrendered.  An agreement was made that no moles were allowed to attack anymore mice.  The moles agreed and everyone lived peacefully once again.  Kyle was given a parade by the Mouse Mayor.  Kyle was truly the greatest mouse warrior!            

Tess & Elvis the Turtle

By

Jordan Yates

Tess, the mascot at Tuckahoe, was sleeping on top of the water in the cool morning air. She was trying to get some rest because today was a big day at the school. Elvis Presley was coming to the courtyard to give a concert. She woke to second graders coming into the courtyard. The courtyard had been home to Tess for many years, so she was used to this. The second graders came in to observe the air, water, and ground temperature. Soon, they left leaving Tess to only hear the pitter-patter of the two small waterfalls.

As Tess was drifting off to sleep, she heard little voices mumbling. She opened her eyes and saw three little glowing balls. They looked to be pixies. The three pixies were dancing on the water as Elvis came into the courtyard. The pixies danced on as Elvis started his concert. First, he began to sing Hound Dog. The pixies hated dogs so they turned Elvis into a turtle. Elvis stopped singing and slowly made his way to the water. It took him thirty-minutes to get there.

Tess was very excited to see him. First, she asked him about being on stage. Elvis said that it was lots of fun. You also sign lots of autographs too. He also said that there were many different colors of lights. When their conversation was over, Tess asked Elvis how he would get back to being a human again. Elvis had no idea what to do about it. Since falling asleep helped him think better, he laid down. Soon, he fell asleep.

Elvis began to dream about his problem. In his dream, he crawled out of the water and went to the home of the pixies. Then, he knocked on the door. A small pixie opened a large door. Elvis began to sing about pixies. Suddenly, Elvis woke up. Elvis found Tess on a log by a fountain. All Tess could say about Elvis’ dream was, “Wow!”

All Elvis needed now was a song about pixies. Tess found a pencil and a torn piece of paper. Tess started to help Elvis with the song.

 “Pixies, pixies, so very smart, with wings of gold and silver too. Flying in the moon lit sky. Dancing on the water so clear, spreading magic here and there.”

Tess wrote down everything Elvis had said.  Elvis took the piece of paper from him. Elvis climbed out of the pond. He climbed up the small hill and climbed many rocks. He walked under trees that felt like a large forest. 

Soon, Elvis came to the castle of the Pixie Queen.  He knocked on the door. A small pixy named Lillian opened the door. She brought Elvis to the queen’s chamber.  The queen let him in. He began to sing the song.  After singing to the queen, she told Elvis to wait outside the castle.  So he did. After he was outside, the queen went to her balcony. She said something under her breath and Elvis was human again. In five steps, he was at the pond.  He thanked Tess again and again, gave her a private concert, and then left.

The Dragon

By

Thomas O’Malley

I woke up one morning to hear a noise. It was a very strange sound and it trying to communicate. Then, I looked at the shiny rock I had found. However, it wasn’t a rock at all.  The shiny rock I found yesterday had a big hole in it.  What could it be?

I got on my hands and knees and started looking around my room. Then, I finally found what was making the noise.  It was hiding under my bed.  It looked like a lizard, but it had wings. It was a dragon, so I decided to name it Spiky because he had many spikes all over his body.  He appeared scared and lonely.

After finding out that I had a dragon under my bed, I decided to leave him alone and started my chores. First, I went fishing and caught two fish.  One was a foot long and the other was eight inches.  Then, when I was done, I washed all my dirty clothes in the Tiber River.  Afterwards, I went to my room to play a little.  Only this time, I went to my room to get my dragon ready for hunting. 

I went outside with my rather large dragon and got out a target.  I then got out my bow and arrows. I got an arrow and fired at a target.  I almost hit the bulls-eye.  Then, I motioned to Spiky because it was his turn. Spiky flew in the air and whipped his tail and a hollow spike flew through the air and hit the target.  The spike caused the target to move backwards a couple of feet.  Spiky then flew over to my side and landed. 

I decided it was time to take my dragon in the forest to hunt.  I tried to hit a deer with my arrows but the dragon kept picking them up and dropping them at my feet.

We eventually ventured deeper into the forest.  When we got so deep into the forest, we found a Parthenon with all sorts of animals in it.  Then, I saw some dragons that looked just like Spiky.  So he flew over to them.  It looks like Spiky had returned home to his mother and father.  I continued to visit Spiky and he would even visit me, but, he always had to get permission from his parents first!

The Fairy Tale

By

Penelope Realff

All fairy tales start with once upon a time. This story does not start that way.  

“Abby come her right now!” called her mother.

“I’m coming,” said Abby.  She came downstairs from her bedroom with her wings sagging.

Her mother was busily cooking breakfast. “Go outside and practice flying!” her mother commanded. So she did because she enjoyed flying. Abby buzzed around in circles. Her wings shimmering blue on the clear water.

While practicing, Abby met another girl named Katie.  They became the best of friends.  They spent all their time together flying.  While flying, Abby heard a bell and said, “I have to go Katie, bye.”  Abby flew back to the house and started to eat her breakfast.

Then her mother tell’s her, “Abby go into town and get a new dress.  You need a new dress when you meet Topaz for the first time.”  Abby was delighted.  She loved to fly into town and shop.  Plus, she was excited to meet Topaz.  When Abby got to the market place, she heard wonderful noises and the windows were lit up with different colors.

Eventually, she found Penelope’s Pretty Priced Dresses. The inside of the shop was as beautiful as the outside. Rainbow color dresses filled the shelves. She quickly found ten blue dresses she liked. But after trying them all on, she put back five of them. Then, she looked at them one more time and put back three. She looked from dress to dress. One was blue and had blue flowers on the neck line. It also had a big flower at the bottom. The second dress was blue and had blue pearls around the neck line and different shades of blue pearls made up a butterfly at the center. She decided on the one with the pearls. She bought it and put it on. Then, she flew home.