17 OH NO!

The next morning, Sassafras and I rushed through breakfast, grabbed a sweater, and bolted to the greenhouse to check on Wishy. As we ran, I whispered, "Please be gone, hiccups, please be gone!" I threw open the greenhouse door, and Wishy rubbed her eyes. "Good morning, Zoey—hic. How did you sleep—hic—?" And then she started to cry. "Istill— hic— havethe— hic— cups!" I felt like I'd swallowed a rock. We'd tried everything we could think of. And even waiting didn't work. What were we going to do now? I

could feel tears starting to come, but I didn't want Wishy to lose hope. "Well, we just have to think of more things to try, right?" Wishy nodded sadly. She floated past me over to the tree beside the barn. I tried to think while I watched Sassafras roll around in the grass. None of us were paying attention when Pip came bounding back to the barn through the forest. "Hey, Zoey, did—" Pip started to say right behind me. And Wishy was right in front of me. I spunaround— Pip was too close! I tried to push him away, but I wasn't fastenough— poof! Pip turned into a tadpole right before my eyes. He landed on the grass and wiggled. His little mouth gasped. "Oh no!" I said. Then more urgently, "OH NO!" If Pip was a tadpole, that meant he had gills now. He couldn't breathe unless he was underwater.

I looked left and then right and quickly spotted a puddle. That would work for now. I gently scooped the flopping Pip tadpole into it. "Sassafras!" I called, and he came bounding over. I pointed to the puddle. "Pip is a tadpole now," I choked out. "Please watch him." "Mrow," said Sassafras. I ran to the barn, filled a big jar with water, and rushed back to Sassafras. I fished around in the puddle, found Pip, and put him in the jar. He opened and closed his mouth like he was trying to talk, but I couldn't understand him anymore. Wishy watched with her mouth wide open and tears pouring down her face. "Zoey, I am

—hic—so sorry—hic—!" I managed to squeak out, "It's OK. It was an accident," and then I ran into the barn with the jar to cry.