27-THE HEADACHE PLANT

THE HEADACHE PLANT The next day, Strongfur and the rest of the villagers, big and small, returned to their homes. They were happy to be back near the TEMPLE OF THE RUBY OF FIRE. They invited us to stay for a while. I was excited. Now I would have time to finish teaching Monkeyfur how to read and write. In return, she tried to teach me how to speak to the monkeys. I guess I wasn't very good, though. The monkeys laughed and laughed when I practiced. Trap and Thea joined them. "Face it, Gerry Berry, you just can't squeak their language," my cousin smirked.

Finally, it was time to leave. I started to pack my bags, but my head was pounding. I had a terrible head- ache. "I'm sorry, Geronimo. I seem to have lost the FIRST-AID IKOT," said the professor. I sighed. Headaches are no fun. I noticed Warmfur watching me. She stood up. "I can fix your head," she said. She ran away into the woods. Warmfur must have thought she was giving me a headache. But she returned a few minutes later. She was carrying a little plant. The leaves were shaped like hearts. Warmfur GROUND UP the leaves into a juice. "Drink," she ordered, giving me the juice. So I did. I mean, I didn't want to insult her. But I was nervous. What if the juice made my tail fall off? What if I sprouted wings? I

closed my eyes. Don't panic, I told myself. It didn't work. I opened my eyes. I couldn't put my paw on it, but something was missing. I wiggled my tail. I waved my paws. Then I felt my head. Now I knew what was missing. My headache was gone! Warmfur smiled. "This isn't magic," she said. "It is science. We call this the headache plant." Soon the professor and Warmfur were chatting away about SCIENCE and plants. They were like two old friends.