7 True Blue

True Blue

Stink had a Peter Parker of a secret. Not even the evil Dr. Octopus could drag it out of him. Aw, who was he kidding? He couldn't hold it in one more second. He ran to the phone to call Sophie and Webster and told them to come over right away. When they got to the house, Stink motioned for his friends to come upstairs. "Psst!" Stink whispered. "Up here." "Why are we whispering?" Sophie asked. "Because. It's a secret." He pulled out the fishbowl from under his desk. "First, I gotta ask— would you guys still be my friends even if I were a frog?" "I'd still be your friend," Sophie told him. "I'd put you in a shoe box and feed you flies." "I'd still be your friend," said Webster. "I'd carry you in my pocket and let you take a bath in the

sink." "Thanks! Now, get ready for your eyes to pop out." Webster gulped. Sophie pushed her glasses up on her nose. "Ready?" Stink asked. "Ready," said Sophie and Webster. "Are you sure?" "Stink!" said Webster impatiently. "I'm just saying. It's not for the faint of heart, as Peter Parker would say." Sophie held her breath. Webster held his breath. "Ta-da!" Stink pulled off the Spider-Man pajama top in one swoop. Webster stuttered. "H-h-h-he... it's... f-f-frog... n-n-not..." "Bl-bl-blue!" shouted Sophie, pointing. "Frog!" Webster's eyes were as round as quarters. "Smurf city!"

"Meet King Otto the Third! Radioactive mutant ninja frog!" said Stink. "So, you mean, he glows blue because he's radioactive?" asked Sophie. Stink nodded. He told them all about finding the freaky frog. He showed them the spot on his arm that he would never ever wash. Stink told them about his newfound frog tendencies. He stuck out his tongue and touched the tip of his nose to prove it. "Look!" Sophie pointed to Stink's feet. "Your toes. They're part webbed!" "You're turning into a frog from the feet up," said Webster.

"Just my second and third toes," said Stink. "I got it from my Grandma Lou. She has the same thing. Judy, too." "Phew," said Webster. "But..." Stink wiggled his toes. "Now that you mention it, it does look a little more webbed than normal." "And how else do you explain the raisins, and the worms, and swimming in the sink and—" "And you have a best friend named Web-ster," said Webster. "And your favorite color is green," said Sophie. "Yipes! We gotta do something. Before you start

glowing." "We better go talk to Jasper," said Stink. "Stat." "Huh?" said Webster. "Huh?" said Sophie. "That means pronto, super-quick, right away!" "Do you think your mom or dad will take us?" asked Webster. "Let's ask," said Sophie. "Tally ho!" said Stink, just like Peter Parker. Stink told Mom he had an A-1 super-important frog mission. Mom dropped Stink and his friends off at the nature center. Jasper O'Farrell told Stink he'd seen his share of frogs. He'd seen two-toed and three-legged frogs. He'd seen frogs with extra legs and frogs with extra eyes and frogs with no legs and frogs with only one eye. He'd seen frogs with shrunken heads and frogs with kinked tails. He'd even seen albino frogs. But never-ever-ever in his long-legged life had Jasper O'Farrell seen a true blue frog up close and personal. He squinted at the blue frog from every angle. He scratched his little beard. He peered at the frog