Something's Fishy

by Nancy Krulik

  “Gotcha!” Andy shouted as he tagged Emma S. on the back.

  “Gotcha!” Emma W. called out as she caught up with Kadeem and tagged him on the arm.

  “Watch out, George, I’m coming for you!” Kevin warned his best friend.

  Toot! Toot! George began playing his kazoo loudly as he ran.

  “Hey, what’s that smell?” Kadeem asked. He pinched his nostrils tight. “It stinks like rotten fish. Must be George’s tooter.”

  Katie giggled. It sure did sound like George was passing gas.

  “What are you doing, George?” Kevin asked him.

  “I’m calling to the other fish for help,” George replied. Toot. Toot.

  “Sorry, George, that won’t work,” Mr. G. called onto the field. “Only herrings can hear that sound. And you’re the only herring in the sea today.”

  “Not anymore,” Kevin said, tagging George on the shoulder. “This sea is now herring free. You’ve been eaten by the mighty frog fish, buddy.”

  “Spit him out,” Kadeem shouted. “I’ll bet he tastes as nasty as he sounds!”

  George turned and blew his kazoo at Kadeem. “What are you laughing at?” George asked him. “You were tagged by a girl fish!”

  “I’m not just a girl, I’m a swordfish girl,” Emma W. said proudly. She chomped her teeth up and down ferociously. “Every fish in the sea is afraid of me!”

  “Watch out, Mandy. You’re about to be eaten!” Kevin cried out.

  Katie shook her head. That was a bad move on Kevin’s part. Mandy was the fastest girl in the whole grade. He never should have given her any warning. She’d started running as soon as Kevin went after her. Now there was no way Kevin could catch her.

  But Emma W. could. It wasn’t that Emma W. was a fast runner. It was just that Mandy was so focused on keeping away from Kevin, she didn’t see Andy and Emma W. at the other end of the field.

  Emma W. was right there, ready to tag Mandy as she ran by.

  “Gotcha!” Emma W. told Mandy.

  “Oh yeah! Teamwork!” Kevin shouted out, giving Emma W. a big high five.

  “And now we three can go after Katie!” Emma W. told Kevin and Andy. “Three against one. We’re sure to get her!”

  “Look out, Katie Kazoo, we’re coming for you!” Kevin warned.

  But Katie didn’t move. She stood right where she was with a big smile on her face.

  “You’d better get running!” Emma W. told her.

  Katie reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a white sponge with pipe-cleaner tentacles coming out of it.

  “You guys had better not come near me,” Katie warned the predators. “This is my sea anemone.”

  “No, Katie. I’m your sea enemy,” Andy told her. “And I’m gonna swallow you up whole!”

  “That’s sea anemone,” Katie corrected Andy. “It’s a sea animal that has lots of tentacles. The tentacles sting any fish that come near it . . . except for clown fish. This sea anemone is like my base. As long as I’m near it, you can’t tag me.”

  “Hey, that’s not fair!” Kevin insisted. “There’s no base in the sea. You’re not safe anywhere.”

  Katie looked over at Mr. G. He smiled at her and punched his fist in the air.

  “Who says?” Katie asked. “In the real ocean, clown fish can hide in sea anemones. That’s how they survive.”

  “Mr. G., Katie’s cheating,” Kevin whined.

  “I am not,” Katie told him.

  “But there’s no way we can capture you as long as you’re with that sea anemone,” Emma W. insisted.

  “Exactly,” Katie told her proudly. “You’ll just have to swim somewhere else for your dinner.”

  “Hey, quit clowning around,” Kevin insisted.

  “I’m a clown fish. That’s what I’m supposed to do,” Katie said with a laugh.

  “Sorry, frog fish,” Mr. G. told Kevin. “Seems Katie the clown fish has figured out a way to beat the predators.”

  “That makes me the winner!” Katie cheered. She was really happy. Katie wasn’t a very fast runner. She hardly ever won at games like this.

  “Actually, you’re all winners,” Mr. G. told the class.

  “Huh?” George wondered.

  “I’ve got a big prize for all of you,” Mr. G. said. “It’s something fish like you will really love.”

  “What, worms for lunch?” Kadeem wondered.

  Mr. G laughed. “No. You can still eat the macaroni and cheese in the cafeteria,” he assured Kadeem. “Actually, your prize is a trip to the Cherrydale Aquarium. You can see real fish swimming in their natural environments. We’ll be going tomorrow with class 4B.”

  “Oh yeah! The aquarium!” Kevin cheered. “I can’t wait to see a real live frog fish.”

  Toot. Toot. George blew on his kazoo.

  “What was that for?” Mandy asked him.

  “I’m just sending a message to the herrings at the Cherrydale Aquarium,” George replied. “Get ready, guys. The big tooter is on his way!”

  Chapter 5

  “I want to find some clown fish!” Katie shouted out excitedly as she peered into the glass that enclosed the giant tank at the Cherrydale Aquarium. It was shaped like a giant glass cylinder, even taller than Katie’s house. You could walk up a ramp and see stuff from all different angles.

  “The Great Barrier Reef tank is really beautiful,” Emma W. added. “There’s a starfish and a crab and . . .”

  “Did you know clown fish can live up to five years?” Katie asked Suzanne and Miriam, who were walking with her. “That’s a really long time for fish. And they got their name because their coloring is sort of clownlike, and . . .”

  “Whatever,” Suzanne said, rolling her eyes.

  “Don’t you think this is fun?” Katie asked her best friend.

  “Sure,” Suzanne assured her. “It’s just that I have so much more on my mind. I’m thinking about the food we’ll have and the games we’ll play at the class 4B engagement party.”

  Katie sighed. Once again, Suzanne was making her feel left out. And she wasn’t the only one. From the look on Emma W.’s face, Katie could tell she was kind of sad about it, too. Then suddenly Katie saw a small flash of orange, black, and white swim past.

  “Hello, clown fish! I’m a clown fish, too!” Katie said, pushing her face up against the aquarium glass. But the clown fish didn’t even seem to notice Katie.

  “I think you’re taking this be-a-fish thing too seriously,” Suzanne said. “You’re not really a clown fish, Katie.”

  “Hey, it’s me! Katie Kazoo, Clown Fish Girl!” Katie said louder. But the fish didn’t look her way.

  “I don’t think it can hear you through the glass,” Jeremy told her.

  “Come on, over here,” Katie urged the fish, tapping on the glass to get its attention.

  That worked. The little fish looked startled and then swam away . . . right in the direction of a gray shark!

  “Oh no!” Katie cried out. “A shark! Watch out, clown fish!”

  At the very last minute, the orange-and-white fish changed direction and swam off, hiding itself in a sea anemone’s tentacles. The nurse shark swam off without even bothering it.

  “Wow! That was close!” George said.

  “You’re not kidding,” Kevin said. “A few more seconds and that clown fish would have been a shark’s supper.”

  Katie frowned. And it would have been all her fault.

  “Luckily that sea anemone was there,” Emma W. told Katie.

  “Come on, dudes,” Mr. G. urged the kids. “Let’s go up to the top of the aquarium so you can look down into the top of the tank.”

  Katie and her friends followed Mr. G. up the winding ramp around the tank until they reached the top. They stopped right in front of a protective railing.

  “Okay, guys, now take a look,” Mr. G. said.

  Katie did. “Oh wow!” she exclaimed as she looked into the water. The fish had looked beautiful before when she’d been looking at them through
the glass. But now, staring down at the whole Great Barrier Reef, with nothing between herself and the fish, well . . .

  “This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” Emma W. told Katie.

  Katie nodded. That was exactly what she’d been thinking.

  “Check out that diver down there,” Kevin said. “He just fed a shark!”

  “Man, he’s really brave!” Andy exclaimed.

  “What’s that funny ball over there?” George asked, pointing. “The white one with the pointy things coming out of it.”

  “That’s a porcupine fish,” Ms. Sweet told him. “He must feel threatened by the shark. When porcupine fish are scared, they swallow a lot of water so they blow up like a balloon. Their quills stick out all over. It makes them really hard to eat.”

  “Cool,” George said. “Hey, look at me. I’m a porcupine fish.” Then he took a big sip of water from his bottle and held it in his cheeks. But when he coughed, the water spurted out of his mouth and all over his shirt.

  “Gross, George,” Suzanne said with a sigh.

  “Oh, look at those blue-and-black fish,” Emma S. said. “They’re gorgeous.”

  “I wish we could see them closer,” Katie said. “We’re so high, and they’re swimming so close to the bottom of the tank.”

  “I can make them come closer,” Kevin said. “When I feed my goldfish, they always swim up to the top of the tank to get the food.” He reached into his lunch bag and pulled a piece of bread from his sandwich.

  “That’s a good idea, Kevin,” Katie said. “They’re probably hungry, anyway.”

  “Exactly,” Kevin agreed. “Here, little fishies. Come and get it!”

  “Kevin, don’t!” Ms. Sweet warned and came running over. She lunged for his hand before he could drop any bread into the tank.

  “But I was just . . .” Kevin began.

  Before he could finish his sentence, Ms. Sweet let out a loud gasp. She was staring at her hand. “Oh no!” she cried out. “My engagement ring. It’s gone!”

  Chapter 6

  Mr. G. came racing over. “Are you sure you were wearing the ring? Maybe you left it home this morning?” he asked Ms. Sweet hopefully.

  Ms. Sweet shook her head. “That ring hasn’t left my finger since I got it . . . at least not until now,” she added sorrowfully.

  Katie had never seen a teacher so upset. Ms. Sweet almost looked as if she was going to cry.

  “It must have fallen off when I pulled Kevin away from the tank,” Ms. Sweet said, staring at her hand.

  “You’re such a jerk, Kevin,” Suzanne said.

  “What did I do?” Kevin asked. “It’s not like I yanked the ring off Ms. Sweet’s finger.”

  “But if you hadn’t been trying to feed the fish, Ms. Sweet wouldn’t have had to pull you away,” Jeremy reminded him.

  Katie frowned. She’d encouraged Kevin to drop some bread in the tank. So it was kind of her fault, too. Katie felt awful about that.

  “This is just terrible,” Becky exclaimed. “An engagement ring is just about the most important piece of jewelry there is. I, personally, can’t wait to get one.” She smiled at Jeremy.

  Jeremy turned beet red and walked away.

  “It’s not Kevin’s fault. He didn’t mean for this to happen,” Ms. Sweet said. Then she hurried off to find a guard.

  “You guys have been so jealous about our engagement party,” Suzanne said. “Maybe Kevin was trying to ruin things.”

  “Suzanne, that’s ridiculous,” Katie said.

  “Yeah,” Kevin added. “Who cares about your dumb old party, anyway?”

  “It is not dumb!” Suzanne shouted back.

  “Okay, kids, this isn’t helping,” Mr. G. said, stepping between Kevin and Suzanne. Then he turned to Ms. Sweet, who was back with a guard beside her.

  Ms. Sweet was saying to the guard, “I’m quite sure my engagement ring slipped off and fell into the tank. Could you ask one of the divers to look for it for me?”

  The guard looked at her. “Do you know where the ring is?” he asked her.

  Ms. Sweet shook her head. “No. Not exactly. But I was standing right here when it happened.”

  “Where did it land?” he asked.

  Ms. Sweet shrugged. “I don’t know. But I’m sure it can be spotted. The diamond is brand-new and very shiny.”

  “The divers are pretty busy right now, lady,” the guard said. “They have a lot of fish to care for. If you knew where the ring was, that would be one thing. But they can’t just take the time to look for it now. Maybe after we close they could take a quick look around for you.”

  Once again, Ms. Sweet looked as though she was going to cry. Katie felt really bad for her. But there was nothing Katie—or anyone else—could do for her right now.

  “Oh. Okay. Well, would you ask them to do that?” Ms. Sweet asked him.

  The guard nodded. “Sure thing, lady. Just write your name and phone number on this pad. If they find the ring in there, they’ll call you.”

  Katie looked at the big tank. It was filled with plants and fish, and gravel and shells on the bottom. It would be really hard to find a diamond in all of that.

  From the look on Ms. Sweet’s face, Katie could tell she was thinking the exact same thing.

  “Oh man, this is so bad,” Katie heard Suzanne say to Becky.

  “Ms. Sweet must feel just awful,” Becky replied.

  “We can’t have a party for her tomorrow,” Miriam added. “She’ll be too sad to celebrate.”

  “But we have to have the party,” Suzanne told her. “I’m supposed to be baking the cake with my mom this afternoon. Oh, how could Kevin do this to me!”

  “To you?” Katie asked.

  Suzanne blushed. “I mean to Ms. Sweet. This party is all about her, of course.”

  “Oh, of course,” Katie replied.

  “Why are you acting like you care, anyway?” Suzanne asked Katie. “Your class isn’t even going to be there.”

  “You’re right,” Katie replied angrily. She turned and stomped off. Suzanne was being really nasty. She didn’t want to be around her anymore.

  Besides, seeing all the water around her was making Katie thirsty. She looked around for a sign for a water fountain. There was one nearby, just around the corner.

  Katie knew she probably should ask Mr. G. for permission, but he was all caught up in helping Ms. Sweet. Anyway, she’d be back in a second.

  Katie walked around the corner. She was happy to see that no one else was waiting for the water fountain. In fact, there was no one else around. Katie bent down and took a long sip of water from the fountain.

  Just then, she felt a cool breeze blowing on the back of her neck.

  That was weird. There weren’t any open windows or fans blowing.

  The breeze got stronger, blowing hard and cold against Katie’s back—and nowhere else.

  Katie gulped. This was no ordinary wind. This was the magic wind!

  “Oh no! Not now!” Katie cried out. “Not during a field trip!”

  But there was no stopping the magic wind. It grew more and more powerful. The tornado whipped around wildly, blowing Katie’s bright red hair all around her face.

  The magic wind was so strong that Katie was sure it was going to blow her away.

  But then it stopped. Just like that.

  The magic wind was gone. And so was Katie Kazoo.

  She’d turned into someone else . . . switcheroo!

  But who?

  Chapter 7

  The first thing Katie noticed was that she didn’t have to open her eyes to see who she was. Her eyes were already wide open. Of course, that was because she didn’t seem to have any eyelids.

  Katie tried to look down to see what clothes she was wearing. Maybe that would give her a clue to who she’d switcherooed into.

  But Katie couldn’t bend her neck. She didn’t even have a neck. So there was no way to look down at her fins.

  Wait a minute. Her fins? People didn’
t have fins.

  But fish do. And that was what Katie had become—a fish. And not just any fish. Right now, Katie was hiding in the tentacles of a sea anemone. That could mean only one thing. Katie had turned into a clown fish. The very same clown fish she had frightened before.

  Now it was Katie’s turn to be frightened. Really frightened!

  Katie wasn’t an especially good swimmer. She’d only made it to the intermediate group at camp. She wasn’t especially good at holding her breath, either. And that was something you had to do if you were under water.

  Well, actually, if you were a fish you didn’t have to hold your breath at all. Katie had learned that fish could breathe under water. And they were naturally good swimmers. Which meant Katie the clown fish was going to be fine.

  Just then, another orange-and-white clown fish swam in front of Katie. It was happily darting back and forth between the sea plants that lined the aquarium. In and out it swam, zigzagging happily through the water.

  That sure looked like fun!

  Katie moved her tail and fins quickly and swam up beside the other clown fish. Now there were two beautiful orange-and-white fish zipping through the water.

  Before long, several clown fish joined in their game. They zoomed through the plants, one after another, as if they were playing a game of wild underwater tag!

  As the water bubbled, Katie let out a little fish giggle. The fish in her school weren’t all that different from the kids in her real school. They loved to play. The only good thing about a fish school was they could play all day. At Katie’s school . . .

  School! Katie stopped swimming. She’d just remembered that all her friends were outside the tank. Katie had wandered off without asking Mr. G. for permission. Now he was probably worrying about her—or even mad at her.

  But it hadn’t been her fault. It was the magic wind’s fault that she wasn’t with her class outside the tank.

  Of course, she couldn’t explain that to Mr. G. He wouldn’t believe her anyway. Katie wouldn’t have believed it, either—if it didn’t keep happening to her.