The Kidnapper's Cave

“Mom! I’m going to the park to play with Ria!” “But Anusha, you just went there this morning!” “Yes, but that was long ago, please can I go? Bye!”

Hey guys! I’m Anusha. I’m 10 years old and I live in Bangalore. Join me, I’m going to the park to meet Ria, my best friend. “Hi Anusha!” I ran into Ria right outside the park. I waved back. “It’s starting to drizzle. Wy don’t we go to my house and play with the jewellery kit?” suggested Ria. I liked that idea, so we ran to Ria’s house. “Hello there Anusha!” Ria’s mom greeted. “Hi aunty!” I said and ran upstairs to Ria’s room.

 

“I’m doing the bracelet,” I said. “And I will do the necklace,” Ria replied back. We get along so well! We chatted non-stop as we did our work. Suddenly, as I picked up a red bead, a faint scream came from outside. “W-what was that?” asked Ria looking frightened. “Sounds like someone is being bothered or even tortured. We’ve got to rescue them,” I replied thoughtfully. I had been reading a lot of Nancy Drew lately.  Ria didn’t look so enthusiastic about this idea but she agreed. “Mom won’t believe if we rush down and tell her that someone is being tortured,” pointed out Ria. “But we could say she has a phone call,” she added cleverly. “Mom, your phone is ringing!” As soon as Ria’s mom went in to her bedroom to pick up the phone, Ria and I rushed out of the door screaming “the rain has stopped, we will go to the park!”

“I think the sound came from the forest beyond the park,” I said. So we took our bikes and raced there. We parked our bikes on the gravel road and trekked into the woods. I realized that Ria was a bit scared when she suddenly grasped my hand every few seconds saying that she heard some sound or the other. As we were walking, Ria suddenly tripped and fell! “Ria, are you OK?” I exclaimed running to help her. “Yes, let’s keep walking,” she replied, dusting the mud off her pants. “Ria! You are awesome!” I screamed. “Huh?” said Ria. “Because you tripped right over a trap door!” Ria was also thrilled as she stared at the brown door she was standing on.

We opened the creaky door and climbed down a ladder. It was getting dark and musty as we went deeper inside. Now we were both holding our hands tightly as we reached the soft ground at the bottom of the ladder. We could barely see two feet ahead of us.

“Um, hi!” said a voice behind us. We spun around in shock. There sat a girl who looked above our age! I could not get a word out, but Ria bold asked, “What’s your name? How come you are here?” “My name is Myra. The kidnappers brought me here. I was having a sleepover with my friend Aishwarya in her apartment. While I was drinking water in their backyard in the night, someone tied my hands and legs together and closed my mouth. I guessed that they had mistaken me for Aishwarya who is very rich,” Myra stopped to take a breath and looked around diffidently, feeling she had said too much, “Anusha, I think we should get out of here with Myra,” said Ria.

Suddenly, Myra froze, “I can hear familiar footsteps. It must be the kidnappers.” Ria and I ran behind a dusty cupboard while Myra sat on the floor, acting like nothing happened. “They are coming,” hissed Riya.

Two men walked in. One was short, fat, and had a scowl on his face. The other was thin, tall, and also sour looking. “Tie the girl up Jack,” said the tall man curtly. Jack nodded and got to work. “The girl’s mom says we have got the wrong girl,” Jack said. “What lies!” laughed the tall man.

I was getting bored listening to the two men talk, when the sound of someone struggling came. It was Myra. She wriggled through her ropes and tried to run for her life. But Jack was too quick for her. He caught poor Myra and tied her up again, really tight. Meanwhile I had a plan. I ran and hid behind the chair where Myra was sitting, while Jack was running after her. I picked up  a sharp stone from the ground. “Anusha, what are you doing?” whispered Ria. A little while after Jack tied up Myra, he and the tall man fell asleep with loud snores. I jumped up and cut Myra’s rope. Then we three climbed up the ladder and ran for our lives, but not before we bolted up the trap door from outside. Now the two kidnappers couldn’t come out until the police came and arrested them!

“I’m making chocolate brownies and you make the cake this time, Myra!” Three months had passed and Ria, Myra, and I were baking in the kitchen.

PS: Jack is gone for good!

Funny Poem

By: Pratya     Date:28/6/12

As I go to the palace,
Watching a yummy cake,
Covered with icing,
Lying beside some steak.


Chocolates, sweets, donuts,
Am I in a dream?
Ice cream with sprinkles,
And extra whipped cream.




I glanced at mom and dad
They stared at the food in disgust!
I asked them what happened?
They said we're leaving we must!


I stamped my foot in protest,
We're not leaving no way!
This place is awesome!
We're staying here okay!


"Get in!" shouted mom
She had a glint in her eye,
I sulkily got in the car
Oh my, oh my! oh my!


Where will we go?
Will it be somewhere nice?
What if its Antarctica?
What if there's a lot of ice!


When we reached, there were
insects everywhere,
slugs in my shirt,
worms in my hair!

                                                                                          
"What is this place!" I shrieked,                                            
shooing a bee away,                                                           
but dad was speechless, 
and mom had nothing to say!


Finally we reached the house,
It was made out of hay,
"Well, lets go in"
I heard dad say.


As soon as we touched the door,
The house broke into pieces,
Oh where should we live? What should we do?
Help us! Jesus! 


Suddenly a dog walked to us,
And what an idea I had,
Lets go to England,
I told mom and dad.


They agreed wholeheartedly,
And now we live in England,
What a day I thought,
As I stretched my legs on the sand...


THE END


 Did you like the story? Please leave a comment below for me. Better, give me three new words! 

Family Portrait (in verse)

A person who you love very much

Someone who guides you everywhere

She’s with you forever

Safely in your heart, she’s kept there

She’s friendly and kind

And has a great mind

She’s honest and loving

A hard person to find…

Can you guess who it is?

Your Mother!

There’s someone else who keeps you bright,

He’s cheerful and fun

He’s very very caring

And is just like the Sun!

He will make you work hard

But also laugh out loud

Your father is the one

Just keep him very proud

Mom and Dad are parents

With them your life is cool

They will make you work hard

But they will also take you to the pool!

He’s playful and fun

But can also really fight

Your brother is the one

Who sleeps next to you in the night.

She takes care of you

And tells you right from wrong

That explains your sister

Who’ll stay with you for long.

Siblings and parents are fun

They teach you many things

Without them your life will be lonely

I can’t imagine such a thing!

The Lonely Dog (A poem)

(rhyme: A B C B)
word giver: Shalini Akka

There was once a dog

jumping all around

he played with a ball

which was nice and round.

Once he went outside

and saw a pretty cat

he wanted a good friend

but she hit him with a bat

Then he saw an elephant

who almost cracked the wall

Should an elephant be his friend?

but it was so scary and tall!

He bounced the ball along the road

and went to visit the mouse

He asked if she could be his friend

but she kicked him out of the house

The poor dog went home sad

and turned off the light

He felt sad and lonely

Oh what a bad night!

In the morning he saw a fly

dancing around in the sky

Was this his new friend?

but she wouldn’t even say hi!

Can you be my friend?

he asked a spider in a cage

Can’t you see I’m stuck

screamed the spider in a rage!

I’ll help you, said the dog

gently taking him out

The spider landed on the ground

with a grin and a pout!

Thank you! said the spider

shaking the dog’s hand

Let us be best friends

race you to the sand!

The dog was very happy

he got a friend at last

he went home feeling good

oh what a day! what a blast!

THE END

Intelligent ice cubes?

Three words: cat, sun, ice cubes
Word-giver: Rohan and Daddy

Hi! I am Snowy the cat. I live with my mom Whiskers in Paris. Our house’s name is “The Basket”.

It was a nice sunny day and I was strolling to the park. There were some ice cubes scattered everywhere. I wondered why. “Hello!” said a timid voice suddenly. I looked back shocked but there was not a soul to be found. I kept walking to the swing still thinking about the voice. May be I was dreaming. That’s because I had a dream the night before about a puppy saying Hi to me. But that’s an other story.

Anyway, as I perched on the swing, the voice came again. “Can you help me?” it said, This time I saw that the ice cubes were speaking! It was a funny sight. Their lips were moving up and down as they talked. I couldn’t believe my eyes! How can I non-living thing speak? I jumped up startled. 

“Sorry to scare you, but we need your help” squeaked the ice cubes. 

“uh-h-h wwwhhaat happenedddd?” I stammered. 

“The hot irritating Sun is melting us” complained the ice cubes.

I suddenly realized that the ice cubes were turning into water. “So how can I help you? And who planted you in the park?” I asked.

“Some mean boys” answered the ice cubes.

“Hey! Why don’t I put you in the freezer?” I said kindly.

“What’s a freezer?”

“You’ll see” I replied, “now,  hop on my back”.

I quickly raced home with the heavy ice cubes dripping from my back.

“Why in the world are there ice cubes on your back?!” shrieked mom.

“Oh can you please put us in the freezer?” said an ice cube.

Mom jumped up. I grinned and filled her in with the ice cubes story. I thought she would snort in scorn, but she believed me.

“Get into the freezer” said Mom, pushing them one by one.

“Hey this is where we were born!” said an ice cube.

“And that’s your new home” I concluded.

The ice cubes looked very happy. “There’s no place like a freezer!” they said.

“Are all non-living things alive?” I asked the ice cubes.

“Nope!” they replied, “did you know? we are slippery so that we can slip from your hands and run away?”

I giggled. “By the way, what are your names?” I asked.

“Ice cubes don’t have names, silly!” they retorted, “ what’s yours?”

“I’m snowy” I answered, “bye, gotta go to bed!” I shut the freezer door.

I guess that’s the end of my strange adventure with ice cubes. I cuddled in my bed wondering how the ice cubes were doing. What a day!

PS. Is my bed going to wake up in the middle of the night and chat with me?

PPS: Go, open your freezer and start talking to an ice cube.

PPPS: Enough of PS’es!

PPPPS: Good night! And don’t let the ice cubes bite!

Why you should help a spider

Hi I am Elizabeth, Elizabeth Brown. I’m 7 years old and I live in an apartment in London with my mom Susanna, my dad Martin, and my 5 yr old sister Kelly. My nickname is Lizzie. I’m going to tell you something queer that happened to me last summer.

It was a hot day in June and I was walking with my friend Annie Hills to the park. “You know I’m going to the zoo tomorrow. Want to come, Lizzie?” asked Annie. “Sure!” I replied excitedly and we sat on the park bench. “There’s gonna be a peacock show” chirped Annie (she was a chatterbox). “Any spider show?” I joked. She shuddered at the thought. Annie had Arachnophobia, fear of spiders. Then we started talking about school and stuff, and we walked back home. “See you tomorrow!” I shouted as I rang the doorbell.

“How was your day Lizzie Pie?” asked Dad. “Good” I answered jumping on the couch. “I say, can we go to the zoo tomorrow, dad?” “Why! that’s exactly what mom and I were planning!” said Dad with surprise. “Yippee!” I screamed and ran upstairs, almost bumping into Kelly. “What happened?” Kelly asked. “We are going to the zoo with Annie tomorrow!” I said. “Cool!” said Kelly as she went to her bed. “Go to sleep, girls!” yawned mom. I slept dreaming about peacocks and spiders.

“Wake up sleepy head!” screamed Kelly in the morning, “we have to go to the zoo now”. “So early?” I murmured. I quickly brushed my teeth, combed my hair, and put on a Pink blouse. Then Kelly dragged me to the car. “What’ve you been doing so late?!” said Mom jumping in.,“We have to pick up Annie on the way”. “Lazy Lizzie” Kelly grinned. I punched her playfully. After a minute, we reached the Hills’ house. Annie and her parents joined us and the parents greeted each other. Finally, we left. It was a long drive to the zoo. “No wonder we left so early” said Annie. “Yes!” I said, “I couldn’t get up in the morning”. “Are we there yet?” groaned Kelly. “Yes, here!” said Dad as he parked the car.

“There are peacocks and spider cages over there” I said pointing to a sign. “Dad, why don’t you, Mr. Brown, and Kelly go to the Dog Show, while the rest of us go to the Peacocks suggested Annie. “Good idea” said Dad and left. 

Annie and I enjoyed watching and petting the peacocks. But none of the people thought about visiting the little spiders. All of us were obsessed with the peacocks. I spotted some more kids from our school. Suddenly I heard a tiny sob. I jumped up, startled. “What happened?” asked Annie. “Didn’t you hear that noise?” I said. “You must be daydreaming, you seriously gave me a fright.” she said. “Sorry” I said though I was still looking around cautiously. I didn’t see anything so I went back to watching the peacocks. But as I fed a baby peacock, I heard another sob.I looked at the peacocks in the cage but all of of them were enjoying their attention. Then I looked at the spider cage and spotted a tiny spider in it. I thought to myself “May be Annie is right and I’m dreaming. But I should still go and confirm if the sound is coming from the spider”.

I quickly ran towards it. “What happened?”I whispered gently because I didn’t want others to think I’m silly for talking to spiders. “m-m-my leg is s-s-s-stuck” sobbed the spider. Now I knew for sure that the spider was indeed crying! Its leg was stuck in the cage mesh. It took me a while but I succeeded in taking its leg out from there. “Thank you!” said the spider with a smile, “what’s your name? I would like to pay you back somehow”. I couldn’t believe that I was talking to a spider! May be magic for real. “My name is Elizabeth” I said, “what’s yours?” “Bethany” replied the spider, “Ok I think you have to go home now, bye!”. I waved good bye to Bethany and ran to the car.

“Where have you been?” asked Annie. I told her about Bethany. At first she didn’t believe me, but then I explained how I also didn’t believe but that spider was actually talking! “Super girl saves Sobby spider!” teased Annie. I laughed at it. After an hour, we dropped off Annie and reached home. I got out of the car and ran upstairs to my room.

I took out my toy paper airplane and started flying it around. As I played, the plane went under my bed. I tried reaching it but I couldn’t. Suddenly, there was a flash of green light and Bethany appeared before me. I couldn’t believe my eyes. She crawled under the bed and spun a web from the plane to my hand. I pulled the web and the plane came out with Bethany sitting in the pilot’s seat. I stroked her back gently.

Then Kelly came into the room asking / shouting “Oh my God! there’s a spider in your hand and you’re petting it. What’s happening here?!” 

Oh well, I have to tell the story all over again.

PS: Now, will you help a spider in trouble?

J. K. Rowling - My Inspiration

(Essay for Shilp Dew, school publication)

If I had to choose a personality as my inspiration, it would be J. K. Rowling. As everyone knows, J. K. Rowling is a famous author from England who wrote Harry Potter. I have read all the books in that series and liked them very much. I have often dreamt of becoming an author  like her and I read and write in my spare time.

Why is she my inspiration?

First, she has a very nice style of writing in which she adds adventure and emotion to her stories. Her stories are also humorous and gripping. As a result, even people who never liked to read books picked up the reading habit from Harry Potter books! I would like to create interesting fantasy plots just like she does. Interesting fact: J. K. Rowling came up with the plot for Harry Potter while sitting in a train!

Next, she went from rags to riches by working hard and believing in herself. Did you know that Twelve publishers rejected Harry Potter before it was published? That shows her confidence and determination. She did not give up until she reached her goal and hence she succeeded in her life. That is very inspiring indeed!

So, in summary, I want to be creative and determined like J. K. Rowling, and become a good writer myself! She is a true inspiration for all of us children who want to do something great in our lives.

How to stop a bully

There was once a boy named Fred. He lived in an apartment in Paris with his mom Julia Jinkie, his dad Alex Jinkie, and his little dog Spots. Fred was 8 years old and all he worried about was his worst enemy - Max Cherry - a mean boy with many followers.

It was a bright and sunny day. Fred and his friend Sam were walking to school. “How I wish Max would leave us alone” sighed Sam. “Yes, but too bad he has hundreds of followers supporting him” said Fred. “But we can make a plan to get rid of him or make him kind” he added thoughtfully. 

“Good morning children!” said Ms. Pattie when they reached their classroom. She started taking attendance. “Hey Jinkie Stinkie” Max teased Fred. Fred ignored him. “Today we are going to learn about angles. Can anyone tell me a type of an angle?” asked the teacher. “Obtuse, Acute, Right, and Reflex angle”said a smart girl named Jenny. “For the twentieth time, can you please raise your hand first, Jennifer” said Mr. Pattie irritated. She asked questions here and there and scolded them if they answered wrong. Finally, it was time for the worksheet. “Open your notebooks” the teacher instructed. “I can’t see the board because you changed my place to the last desk” said Fred squinting. “Poor thing, I think you should to go the optician” sniggered Max. Ms. Pattie smiled fondly at Max. All teachers loved him because he acted really sweet in front of them. “Sit in front and I don’t want any more grumbles” said the teacher. The children finished their work quietly and got it corrected. “Indoor playing time!” said the teacher.

Fred and Sam started playing with the Lego blocks in the corner of the room. “Did you get your eyes checked?” smirked Max as he walked past Fred. He kicked their lego statue down. Fred stared at his hard work which had fallen into bits. He was about to jump up and give Max a piece of his mind. But Sam stopped him. “Cool down, old guy! It’s no use” he explained calmly. Fred sat down, tears in his eyes.

Next they had Science, Fred’s favorite subject. Fred got his book out and - BUT WHERE WAS HIS PENCIL!. Fred searched and searched but the pencil was no where to be found. He scratched his head. After a few minutes, their teacher Ms. Lacey entered the room. As soon as she came in, Fred raised his hand. “What’t the matter?” she asked. “I can’t find my pencil!” exclaimed Fred. The teacher raised her eyebrows. “Did you check everywhere?” she asked him. He nodded. “Let me check in the locker under his table” Max said sweetly. “I already checked there!” said Fred, putting his hands on his hip. “Not properly” winked Max. When no one was looking, Max silently took a brown pencil from his pocket. Fred stared at him suspiciously. “Make it fast” hurried the teacher. Max ran to Fred’s table. He opened the desk and acted as if he was searching. After a minute, Max showed everyone the brown pencil in his hand. “Found it!” he snorted. There was a minute of silence. Then everyone burst out laughing. “Silence!” shouted the teacher. She nodded at Max. “I never expected this from you Fred!” she sighed, leaving the room.

“Home Time!!” Everyone started packing their bags. “I have an idea” said Max putting his pencil box in his bag. “Tell me tomorrow” replied Fred. He mounted his bike and set off home. Finally he reached and rang the door bell. His mom answered the door. “How was school?” she asked. “Good” he murmured. She kept her hands around him but he lightly pushed her away and ran upstairs. Meanwhile, his dad was on the computer. “Dad” said Fred. “If someone keeps on bullying you, what should you do?” “Well, if you ask me, tell the teacher” said his dad. “But Max keeps on bullying me” protested Fred. “Then whatever he did to you, you should do the same to him” replied his dad.

Fred dashed off to his room and sat on his bed thinking. He stroked his dog’s soft and silky hair. “I think we should follow dad’s advice, right Spots?” said Fred. Spots nodded as if he understood every word. “Time for dinner, Fred!” called his mom. Fred ran down and started eating the hot and tasty noodles his mom had made. After he finished eating, he went upstairs to brush his teeth and tucked into bed. “Goodnight Spots!” he said turning off the lights.

The next morning, it was time for school. Fred quickly dressed up, ate his breakfast, and joined Sam on the road to school. “Now can you tell me what your plan is?” asked Fred. “I’ll tell you in school” answered Sam. “Come on!!” protested Fred. “Patience, my boy, patience” said Sam. When they reached the school, the teacher took the attendance. “Play time!” she announced. “Max is going, now is our chance” said Sam. He quickly ran to Max’s locker and got out a stuffed toy Bear. He hid it behind the aquarium. Fred realized what he was doing and got to work. They hid Max’s things inside pots, under tables, etc. Sam was putting an eraser behind a pot when the pot fell down and broke. Someone came running to the class hearing the noise. It was Jenny’s friend Sara who was the class monitor. “What happened?” she scowled. “uhhhh”said Sam. Sara started at the broken pot with wide eyes and ran out of the room. Sam shrugged. “Be careful next time” scolded Fred. “Now let’s stop and go for recess” said Sam. But the recess was already over because the teacher was entering the class.

“I am excited to see Max’s face when he opens his locker” giggled Sam. “Me too” said Fred. “Look! He is opening it!” Suddenly, Max gave a scream. “My desk has been robbed!” he squealed. The girls started chuckling. Fred and Sam’s sides were aching from laughing. “I can not do anything!” the teacher shouted above the voice. Max started to sob. “Cry baby!” sniggered Sam. Fred walked over quietly and took out all the things he had hidden, dumping them onto Max’s table. Everyone started to laugh even harder. To think that the most popular kid in the class was acting like a fool! 

By now it was time up. The teacher left the class. Max went to Fred’s table and apologized. “I’ve been really silly this year, I promise that I will leave you alone” said Max. “It’s ok Max” Fred said, with a grin. The boys shook hands. “Anyway” said Fred, “race you to the gate!”