Weather or Not

by Sarah Mlynowski

  She set down her poster board and marched over to him. “Elliott Cohen! I waited and waited for you!”

  Elliott looked startled. “I … uh … came to school early,” he said.

  “How was I supposed to know that?”

  “I don’t know,” Elliott said feebly. He glanced over at Willa, who was stroking Carrot’s ears. “It’s not like we signed a contract saying we’d walk to school together every single day.”

  Sebastian looked over at them. “People,” he said. “Your voices are making very sharp sound waves and they are hurting my eyes.”

  Nory ignored him. “But, Elliott! Aunt Margo was going to fly us to school! She was going to tour us all around town before we got here. I arranged it specially for this morning as a surprise!”

  Elliott glanced at Willa. Again. “I’m sorry.”

  Nory seethed.

  Why did he keep glancing at Willa?

  Was he walking to school with her now?

  “Good morning, class!” Ms. Starr called, striding into the classroom and closing the door. “Who’s ready for some semaphore work?”

  Everyone groaned. Semaphore work meant communicating—or trying to communicate—with someone by waving flags.

  “Pair up, kids, and grab a flag,” Ms. Starr went on. “As always, try to connect with your partner without words. I’m taping the list of signals we’ve practiced here on the bulletin board. Nonverbal communication is a skill that will help you with your magic.”

  “Elliott?” Willa said. “Partners?”

  “Sure,” he answered.

  Nory’s mouth fell open. Willa knew Nory was upset about Elliott missing the flying outing. She knew! And she still asked him to be her partner! And he still said yes! Where was the consideration?

  “Nory, partners?” Pepper asked.

  Nory turned. “Of course,” she told Pepper loudly. “I would love to be your semaphore partner, Pepper. You are a good friend. I always have fun with you.”

  Pepper looked at her funny. “Why are you using a robot voice?”

  “What? I’m not!” Nory grabbed a flag and pulled Pepper to the middle of the floor. “Let’s communicate nonverbally. Come on.” Then she gave Willa the stink eye.

  At lunch, Elliott ate with Willa.

  Okay, Elliott ate with Willa and Bax and Marigold and Sebastian.

  But not with Nory. Nory was on duty for keeping Andres safe on his leash, so she ate with him and Pepper.

  At recess, Elliott played soccer with Willa, Bax, and some kids from the Fuzzy class, while Nory, Pepper, and Andres hung out at the swing set.

  Grrr.

  Still, Nory tried to look on the bright side. She and Pepper each had a swing, and two swings plus Andres meant they could play a game they had invented after their trip to Dragon Haven a couple of weeks ago. Swinging meant Pepper and Nory could pretend to fly, too. In the game, Andres was a Flyer named Lars Ernesto Montmorency. The two girls were flying dragons who helped him rescue animals in peril.

  Nory was a Blurper Dragon, of course. Her name was Rocket. Pepper was a Luminous Dragonette named Pingleton.

  Anyway, it was a pretty fun recess after all, but when they went indoors, Ms. Starr told everyone to work on their Bing projects.

  Nory’s insides coiled. She hadn’t yet told Willa about the change in topic.

  “I solved our boringness problem!” she told Willa brightly as she got out the poster board and put it between them on the table. “We’re changing subjects and it’s going to be so much better. Listen. Are you ready?” Willa didn’t say anything, so Nory pressed on. “We’re doing Gertrude Raspberry, the amazing Fluxer!”

  Willa made a sour face. “I found some more books on storms,” she complained. “I was going to read them.”

  “Did you read them yet?” Nory actually hoped Willa hadn’t.

  “Not much of them,” Willa admitted.

  “Great. Gertrude is way more exciting than weather and she’ll make a much better poster. There’s a ton of information about her, so we can have extra sources and get an O. Don’t you want to get an O?”

  Willa looked confused. “But we started the poster board already. With the glitter. I don’t think we’re allowed to take a new one.”

  “Omigosh, it’ll be fine,” Nory snapped. “What’s your problem? You hadn’t read anything for the weather project, anyway.”

  Willa flushed. She blinked her eyes.

  Nory knew that blink. It meant she had better be gentle, because if Willa started raining, everyone’s posters would be ruined. She placed her palms on the table and made a big effort to soften her tone. “Do you know about Gertrude? She’s really awesome.”

  “I know a little,” Willa said.

  “Yay! That means it won’t be hard. We can write facts about her life and make a map of Gertrude and Zeponiah’s journey from Florida to Dunwiddle. We’ll paint a polar bear here, where the glitter is. So the glitter can still be a snowstorm, and we can use the same piece of poster board. See?”

  Willa nodded.

  Nory refrained from mentioning the water-damaged corner. Bygones, she told herself grimly. “All right, then let’s get started,” she said. “Our poster has to be finished by Friday.”

  “I know the due date,” Willa said.

  Nory mentally reviewed the week ahead. “I got books about her from the Dunwiddle library this weekend. We have at least five sources. We’ll have most of tomorrow to work on it. Wednesday we have our field trip to the Bing museum, so we might not get time then. But we can finish up on Thursday and Friday.”

  “Elliott and I have AquaMerge tutoring on Tuesday and Thursday,” said Willa.

  Who cared about AquaMerge?

  Tutoring had nothing to do with this project!

  Why did Willa always bring up tutoring with Elliott? Big deal. She got to hang out with Elliott in the pool.

  What a show-off.

  “I have a really good idea,” Nory told Coach Vitomin at the end of the day.

  “Tell me!” Coach said. He tossed a piece of raw broccoli into the air and caught it in his mouth.

  “Tomorrow we should work on my squippy.”

  “What’s your squippy?”

  “A squid-puppy. I’ve done it before by accident, but I don’t have it under control yet.”

  “Nory, you can’t play kittenball as a squid-puppy.”

  “I think practicing other animals would be good for me.”

  “Other kitten variations, sure. Keep your head in the game.”

  Nory thought fast. “What about a squitten? A squid-kitten could be good for kittenball.”

  Coach looked unconvinced. “How do you figure that?”

  “Coach. C’mon. I could use my tentacles. I could suction my opponents with all my extra limbs.”

  Coach wrinkled his brow.

  “Think big, Coach,” Nory said. “Eight legs instead of four. Imagine what I could accomplish.”

  “Are you sure you can do a squitten?” Coach asked.

  No, Nory was not.

  “Absolutely!” she said.

  He scratched his bald head. “Then what the heck. Sure, tomorrow we’ll work on your squitten.”

  Nory clapped. “Let’s meet at the pool!”

  “The pool? What pool?”

  “The high school pool! Some of the other UDM kids are in there at the same time we meet for tutoring, so I’m sure we can swim then, too. I’ll tell Bax. We’ll bring bathing suits!” Bax and Nory both had Coach for a tutor.

  “Or you could practice squippy in a bucket,” Coach said. “If Bax fluxes into a rock while we’re at the pool, he’ll sink.”

  “No, no, a bucket’s no good,” Nory said quickly. “You can help Bax work on something that floats! Like a boat! Or a rubber duckie! And you can show us how to do a fish. You can do a fish, right, Coach?”

  Coach puffed up his chest. “Can I do a fish?! Of course I can do a fish! Fish are complicated, but I can do them.” He made a fist and drove it int
o his opposite palm.

  Nory gave him a thumbs-up and hurried out the door before he changed his mind.

  Tuesday afternoon, Willa skipped out of the changing room and toward the pool.

  After her talk with Marigold a few days ago, she’d done a lot of thinking. Now she had a ton of questions for Ms. C. She wanted to talk about Marigold’s “other types of magic” theory. She was also hoping to try Carrot’s technique of damming shut the river of her magic.

  Willa had even read one of the books on Gertrude. She’d taken notes, too. She’d been too nervous to show her notes to Nory in case Nory criticized her handwriting or said they weren’t detailed enough, but she’d taken them. She planned to surprise Nory with a cool fact: Gertrude flunked her polar bear license test the first time around.

  Now, at the pool, Willa hung her towel on the hook and tugged at her bathing suit bottom. Today she was wearing her pink bikini, which was another reason it was a good day. She loved her pink bikini.

  “Come on in!” Elliott called from the water.

  “Yes, go ahead and swim for a bit,” called Ms. C from the bleachers. She glanced up from a portfolio she was looking over. “I’ll be right with you two.”

  “Awesome.” Willa dove into the pool and swam to the shallow end.

  Hi, water, she said silently, coming up for air. She swooshed her hands over its surface. Each finger left a ripple in its wake.

  She twirled, her arms outstretched. Swirls of water circled her. The beauty of it reminded her of the peaceful feeling she got when she read poetry. Being in the water gave her the same poem-y feeling.

  Ms. C came over five minutes later. “Okay, kids,” she said, settling on the edge with her feet and shins in the pool. “Shall we start with Bubbles?”

  Willa swam over. “Actually, I was hoping we could talk,” she said. “I have some questions.”

  “Sure.”

  “Do you know Marigold Ramos? She’s in Ms. Starr’s UDM class with Elliott and me. We were talking, and Marigold dreamed she was a—”

  The door to the pool swung open.

  “Surprise!” Nory cried. She stood in the doorway. Behind her stood Bax and Coach. All three wore swimsuits.

  What?!

  Why was Nory here?!

  “I can’t believe you dragged us to the pool,” Bax muttered to Nory. “I told you I can’t swim.”

  “You told me you swim a little,” Nory said. “And this is a good chance for you to learn!”

  “I really don’t want to turn into a rock in the water,” said Bax.

  “I have a floatie for you,” said Coach. “And Ms. Cruciferous and I both have lifeguard certifications.”

  Bax tightened his jaw.

  “Watch this!” Nory called. She ran forward and cannonballed into the pool.

  Willa seethed.

  This is the best, Nory thought. Why hadn’t she come up with this idea before? All her tutoring sessions from now on should take place in the pool!

  She, Coach, and Bax were in the shallow end. Elliott, Willa, and Ms. C had moved to the deep end, but even so, Nory could wave at Elliott throughout the lesson! He was waving back at her right now! Clearly, he was glad his very best friend was in the pool with him.

  “This is not comfortable,” Bax complained from his floatie, which was shaped like a rainbow unicorn. His bottom was wedged into the hole of it. He flapped his arms helplessly.

  “Bax, my boy, you’re doing great!” Coach exclaimed.

  “What makes you say that?”

  “Why, you’re staying human in a difficult situation, of course!”

  “Can I please just sit on the edge of the pool?”

  “Listen, Bax,” said Coach. “Right now you’re in a place where you might flux, but take stock of yourself! You’re breathing deeply. You’re maintaining focus. You’re using the techniques Ms. Starr and I have taught you to keep yourself human!”

  “If I flux into a piano right now, we’ll be in serious trouble,” Bax muttered.

  “Ah, but that’s why we’re in the shallow end,” said Coach. “You’re always an upright piano! Part of you will be above water!”

  Bax looked at Coach as if he were nuts. “And that’s supposed to make me feel better why?”

  “Nory, I’m going to show you some basics of squid fluxing,” Coach told her. “Are you ready? Paying attention?”

  Nory was.

  Coach wrinkled his brow and made a bearing-down expression.

  Nothing happened.

  “Whenever you’re ready!” Nory said. She was psyched to see Coach do squid. She had never seen any fish fluxing at all, actually.

  A flush crept up Coach’s thick neck. Soon his entire face was red. Then his bald head turned red.

  “Coach?” Nory asked. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m mainly a mammal Fluxer,” Coach said. “I specialize in felines, really.”

  “But yesterday, when we talked—”

  “Give me a second, will you?” Coach said. He grunted. Then—pop! His right arm turned into a squid arm. Or a squid leg? Whichever.

  A vein pulsed in Coach’s neck, and his other arm fluxed into a second squid leg.

  Squid-Coach frowned. His squid arms—legs—seemed to have a life of their own. They flopped and swelled. His right squid leg-arm slapped the water, and Bax drew back.

  “Aaaargh!” Squid-Coach growled, straining with all his might. With a ripping sound, two more squid legs emerged where his human legs used to be.

  “Maybe if you had all eight tentacles, you’d be more balanced?” Nory suggested. She felt a little sorry for him and wanted his squid to come out well.

  Squid-Coach swam in a circle, his squid limbs flailing. He resembled a sundial, Nory thought. A wet, floppy, bald-headed sundial. Nory edged closer to Bax. “Yikes,” Bax muttered.

  Squid-Coach waved all four tentacles furiously, churning the water into a froth. “I heard that!”

  “Sorry, Coach,” Bax called. “Just, you’re kind of a torso with tentacles.”

  With a whoosh, Squid-Coach took in a gulp of air, flung up his tentacles, and sank beneath the water. When he rose, he was back to his regular teacher shape.

  “Hmm,” Coach said. “That didn’t go as planned.” He turned toward Bax. “How are you doing, Bax? Still human?”

  “Still human,” Bax said from the unicorn floatie.

  “Fantastic.” Coach clasped his hands. “Nory, you’re up. Don’t worry if you can’t get all eight legs on your first go. In fact, for kittenball, it might prove helpful to keep your front kitten legs, but add on squid tentacles.” Coach scratched his head. “But will you be able to swim?” He shrugged. “We don’t know. But I’m standing by. I won’t let you drown. Are you ready?”

  “Hey, Elliott!” Nory called. “I’m going to try squitten!”

  Elliott didn’t turn around. He was listening to his tutor.

  Nory tried again. “Elliott! Watch!”

  He glanced her way.

  Okay, then. Ready. Set. Go! Nory raised her hands over her head and stretched her spine. Energy crackled through her. The world went fuzzy as her body—at least, half of it—went furry.

  Squitten-Nory was here! She had a kitten head. She could tell by the whiskers. She had a kitten torso, too. But sticking out from her torso were four legs-turned-tentacles and one tail-turned-tentacle!

  Five tentacles! Five!

  “You did it, Nory!” Coach cried.

  Squitten-Nory felt fantastic. She paddled with her head above water for a minute. Was Elliott looking? Could he see from all the way in the deep end?

  She popped back to girl form and looked over.

  Elliott was talking to Willa.

  “Elliott, did you see? I did squitten!”

  Ms. C held her finger to her lips.

  Was she shushing Nory? She was! She was! And Elliott had missed the squitten!

  Ms. C turned her attention back to her students. All three held on to the pool’s edge, their expressio
ns serious.

  “All right,” Coach said. “Squitten accomplished! I know you have gym class starting soon, so let’s dry off.”

  No way! Nory thought. Elliott didn’t even see!

  Before Coach could make eye contact with her, Nory fisted her hands and concentrated with all her might. Squitten, squitten, squitten!

  Bones cracked. Muscles stretched. Squelch!

  Ha-ha-ha, look at me! Squitten-Nory thought, swimming hard. She paddled to the rope that separated the shallow end of the pool from the deep end. She slapped a tentacle on the water’s surface.

  Elliott didn’t look over.

  Meow!

  He still didn’t look over. He kept talking to Willa!

  Hiss!

  Then Squitten-Nory felt a new and unpleasant sensation. Pip, pip, pip! Prickly quills were exploding out of the rear part of her body.

  What?

  Pip, pip, pip! Quills came out of her forehead and her front paws, too.

  Oh, dear. She was adding porcupine to her squitten!

  What the zum-zum?

  Stop! Do not add porcupine! No one wants a squitten with quills!

  Calm down.

  Control your magic. Think of the semaphore! Think of the poetry!

  Pip, pip, PIP! Semaphore and poetry were no help. More quills came out.

  Nory could feel her squid tentacles sucking back into her body.

  Zwingo! Now she had no legs at all, kitten, squid, or otherwise.

  Swoosh, brr-r-r-oonk, swooop!

  Her body lengthened out. Fins stretched from her back and sides. A powerful tail swished behind her. She could tell she had gotten huge. And those angry, jealous, sticky, prickly porcupine pins kept stabbing their way out of her! They jabbed out of her whole entire body!

  “For the love of green tea, what is she?” Coach cried.

  Nory knew the answer. She could feel it.

  She was a dolphin with porcupine quills. She was Porcuphin-Nory.

  Porcuphin!

  Wheee! Porcuphin-Nory zoomed through the water like a balloon that had just been untied.

  Whoosh!

  She saw a large fleshy thing, so she poked it. Someone bellowed.

  Porcuphin-Nory zipped away! She found something squishy and brightly colored. She poked it, and zzzzzzz!