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a new classic by Edward Summer |
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you think our frog is Teefr?" Tony burst into his bedroom with Ginger
and Fred close behind. They galloped across the room, then suddenly came
to a halt.
Except for the white rosebud -- which had begun to open and take on a light
pink hue -- the terrarium was empty!
"Who left the top uncovered?" Tony demanded. He glared at Fred.
"Maybe the frog's on the floor," Fred said. He got down on his hands and knees and began to search. He stopped only for a moment to place Teddy on Ginger's bed.
Tony raced out of the room. Leaning over the banister, he shouted, "Mom! Did you see our frog anyplace? It's gone!"
"No," she called from the kitchen, "and you kids had better hurry up and finish packing. You have to leave for the airport in an hour!"
"Aw, Mom!"
"Just finish packing, please."
Frustrated, Tony exploded back into the bedroom. "Hurry up! We've got to find it!" He swooped over to the closet, grabbed his suitcase and flung it across the room. It narrowly missed Teddy and landed half-open on Fred's bunk. Tony began to toss clothing furiously.
Teddy lay on his stomach, a little afraid to pick up his head.
"Pssst!" Dunkey whispered, "Psst!" Teddy crawled over. Dunkey whispered something into his ear. Teddy listened and nodded.
"Ginger dumped her drawer of clothing onto the floor. "C'mere and help," she said to Fred.
"I'm finding the frog."
"Well, stop finding it for a second and help me pack. You better pack your stuff, too." Fred dawdled over and began to pick up socks.
"Ahem!" Teddy cleared his throat. "I think I know where the frog is."
Everyone looked up except Dunkey, who was playing stuffed on Ginger's pillow.
"I think it hopped into the hall and went downstairs."
"How do you know?" Tony asked.
"Well…." Teddy began, glancing at Dunkey.
"Never mind," Tony interrupted, "there's no time." He stuffed the last of his clothes, all in knotted bundles, into the suitcase and slammed it shut. Ends of socks stuck out on all sides. "Come on, hurry!" He carried the suitcase out of the room as fast as he could.
Ginger slammed her bag shut, grabbed it and Dunkey, and followed Tony downstairs. Fred was left in the room with his small suitcase, which was nearly half as tall as he was. He began to drag it across the bedroom floor, knocking over some toys and getting hung up on others. Fred stopped and went over to Ginger's bed. He took Teddy down and set him on the floor.
"You help, too," Fred instructed. Teddy put his shoulder to the back of
the suitcase and began to push while Fred pulled with both hands on the
front. This isn't doing much good, Teddy thought. Between the two of them,
though, the suitcase began to inch toward the door.
.
Finally, they were out of the bedroom. By staying on the uncarpeted portion of the upper hallway, Fred slid the suitcase more easily to the top of the stairs.
"Hurry along, Fred." Tony's mother said. Teddy dropped to the floor, pretending to be limp. Fred dragged the suitcase onto the top stair. Teddy grabbed onto a protruding sock and bounced down the stairs along with the suitcase. All at once, Fred lost his grip, and the suitcase slid down the last half of the staircase. Teddy flopped helplessly up and down until he and the suitcase landed at the bottom next to Douglas Calder's shoe. Fred stared down the stairs, unsure of just what to do.
"It's okay, Fred," Douglas said. "I'll get it now. Just tie your shoelaces." Tony's father picked up the suitcase and started for the car.
"Wait!" Fred yelled. He clambered down the stairs, ran down the hall after his suitcase, and grabbed Teddy at the last moment. Then he tied his shoelaces.
"Dad," Tony said from the kitchen, "our frog got loose. We've got to find him."
Douglas glanced at his watch. "You've got five minutes to look before we leave."
"But, Dad! It's important!"
"Five minutes." The back door slammed behind him.
Startled by the noise, the frog jumped suddenly out from a shadow in the back hall and hopped frantically toward the basement stairs.
"There!" Fred shouted. "It's the frog!"
"Where?" Tony whirled around.
"Going down to the basement," Fred said without moving.
"Well, catch him, butt brain!" Then Tony spotted the frog and raced wild-eyed toward it. "The basement, Ginger. He went into the basement!" Ginger ran in from the living room and followed Tony down the dark stairs. "Get the light! Tony yelled. Ginger flipped a switch on her way down, then disappeared after Tony.
Fred ambled slowly down the stairs, one at a time, holding the railing with one hand and Teddy with the other. By the time he reached the bottom, Tony and Ginger were already searching the floor on their hands and knees.
"He's
right there," said Fred without hesitation.
Tony cringed. "Where?"
"By the crack!"
"Shhhhhh," Tony said as he turned his head and spotted the frog. "You'll scare him." How come that little creep saw him and I didn't? Tony thought. "We've got to catch him," he whispered, "we've got to. Spread out." He gestured toward Ginger and Fred.
"Gimme." Ginger whispered fiercely. She grabbed Teddy away from Fred and set the bear down, along with Dunkey, on a wooden crate near the far wall. "Go that way!" She pointed Fred around to the right of the frog while she went left.
The frog sat still, just next to the crack, as though it were listening. Its eyes were half open, and its throat ballooned in and out noiselessly. As Ginger crept closer, the amulet slipped out from under her sweatshirt with a metallic clank. It hung in plain view, swinging back and forth.
The frog's eyes shot open and swiveled in Ginger's direction. Its throat
ballooned furiously. "The amulet!" murmured the frog in a wet, gurgling
voice. Amazed, Tony and Ginger stood gaping.
"Tony! Ginger! Fred! Time to go!" Douglas Calder's voice shattered the silent tension of the basement.
Terrified by the shout, the frog leapt over the crack and, in two prodigious hops, disappeared into the shadows.
"Dad!" Tony yelled in frustration. "We almost had him!"
"I'm sorry, but we have to leave now. We'll miss the plane." Douglas leaned down the stairs.
"Aww, Dad!"
"Now!"
Reluctantly, the children meandered upstairs, looking over their shoulders the whole time.
"You don't understand," Tony pleaded "we've got to catch it! Just one more minute. Please! Forty-three seconds, even!"
"You'll catch another frog when you get back." His father held the back door open.
"But I need this one. Something terrible is going to happen unless we catch it!"
"Something worse is going to happen if you miss the plane." Tony's mother leaned down and kissed her son. "Have a nice flight, kids." She kissed each child in turn.
"Thanks for having us," Ginger said. She looked down and pinched Fred's backside.
"Ouch! Thank you! Quit it!" Fred said.
"You're welcome," Julia Calder answered.
"We can't go!" Tony said suddenly. "It's the crack in the basement. I think we should definitely stay and not go anywhere: Even you and Mom!"
"You'll feel differently when you get there," his mother said.
Douglas
hustled the children into the back seat of the car. He waved to Julia and
backed the car down the driveway. He turned into the street, and they were
on their way to the airport.
"I thought you were looking forward to this trip," said Douglas after a few minutes of driving in silence.
"Well, we were, but all those weird things started to happen. Like the earthquake and the crack and the frog and, oh, forget it....." Tony decided it was no use. He stared out the window at the thick clouds gathering along the mountains, wondering what would have happened if they had managed to catch the frog after all.
A few drops of rain hit the windshield, then a downpour erupted. Douglas turned on the windshield wipers.
"Just what I need," he thought out loud.
"Teddy! I left Teddy!" Fred sat up suddenly in the back seat, wide-eyed. He was on the verge of tears. "You made me leave him!" Fred turned to Ginger and slugged her in the arm.
With a sad vision of Dunkey sitting alone with Teddy back in the basement, Ginger grabbed Fred's arm to stop him. "It's too late now," she said.
"I'm sorry, Fred," Douglas said attempting to console him, "but we really can't go back. We'll miss the plane. I promise to put your bear in the mail as soon as I get home, okay? You'll have it in a day or two."
Tears ran down Fred's cheeks.
"Yeah, sure. That's great," Ginger said, thinking about Dunkey. "Right, Fred?"
Fred just stared at his untied shoelaces.
"Thanks, Mr. Calder," Ginger squeezed Fred's arm, but Fred was still quiet.
Douglas considered turning on the radio, but decided to leave the group in silence. The rain became steadily heavier. It pelted against the roof and windshield and washed up the side windows like worms. With a steady whoosh from its tires, the car sped down the highway toward the airport.
(c)1980,1981,1996,1997,2006
Edward Summer, All Rights Reserved, All Characters TM, R In any form whatsoever
Mrs. Seel, Theadore Rosebear,
Dunkey Hotie, Tony Calder, Ginger Stephens, Fred Stephens, Teefr, Reon
are all (TM) (R)
created 4/5/97
revised 11/17/97, 4/16/98,
4/25/99, 10/21/99. 07-05-2006
