The Curse of the Campfire Weenies by David Lubar Page B

life out of them.
    I broke through to the surface and let the clean, sweet air above the lake fill my lungs.

    â€œMake it?” Joey asked.
    I shook my head, too winded to speak.
    â€œThat’s what I thought,” he said. “We’re never going to get to the bottom.”
    I grabbed onto the edge of the raft and drank deep gulps of air. On the bank near the shore, our parents talked and played their adult games. I watched Dad throw a rock at another goose. Somewhere below us, creatures breathed mud and made their own light. They looked so different from us, but I was afraid we had a lot in common.
    â€œNever reach it,” Joey said again.
    â€œMaybe not.” But I knew we’d keep trying. And so would they. All I hoped was that the creature who finally reached us would be a kid like me.

THE GENIE OF THE NECKLACE
    K aren fought with Stacy over the necklace. She knew she’d seen it first, even though she was halfway across the shop when she spotted it. Stacy had no right to try to grab it before she could get there.
    They’d ended up tugging at the necklace, pulling hard, yanking, until Karen was afraid the chain would break. But it held. It was a strong chain, made of hundreds of tiny links. It was a long, beautiful chain, from which hung the most lovely green stone Karen had ever seen.
    â€œIt’s mine,” Karen said. “I want it. I saw it first. You know I love silver.”
    â€œOh, all right.” Stacy released her end. She turned away from Karen and picked up a tie-dyed scarf from another table. “This is a lot nicer, anyhow.”
    Karen ran her fingers over the chain, then stroked the polished surface of the wonderful green stone that hung from it. The gem was the size of a robin’s egg. She was sure the color perfectly matched her eyes. Karen smiled as she
realized she’d won the battle. She usually won her battles with Stacy.
    But could she afford it?
    She checked the price tag. This can’t be right, Karen thought as her delight wrestled with suspicion. She approached the owner of the shop, who sat behind the counter working on a crossword puzzle.
    â€œExcuse me,” Karen said, her voice sounding strangely empty in this dusty place of ancient objects.
    â€œYes?”
    â€œThis is twelve dollars, right?”
    The man nodded.
    Karen couldn’t believe her luck. Quickly, before anything could change, she paid for the necklace.
    â€œWould you like a bag?” the man asked as he placed her change on the counter.
    â€œI’ll wear it,” she said, fastening the necklace around her neck.
    As she put it on, she glanced into a grimy, cracked mirror on an old dresser. She couldn’t help smiling. The necklace looked beautiful. And so did she.
    â€œYou have to admit, I was born to wear this,” she told Stacy as they left the shop.
    â€œYeah,” Stacy mumbled as she tied the scarf on her head.
    â€œHey, you still angry?” Karen asked.
    Stacy shook her head. “Not really.”
    â€œGood.” Karen couldn’t wait to get to her room so she could admire the necklace in a clean mirror.

    She said good-bye to Stacy and hurried home.
    Later, Karen was pretty sure it had been a combination of things that had released the creature. The mirror might have played a part. And perhaps the perfume she’d dribbled on her neck. Stroking the gem must have done something—like stroking Aladdin’s lamp. Maybe the tune she’d been humming even played a role.
    Whatever the cause, the result happened quickly. One instant, Karen was alone in her room, admiring her purchase. The next, a jet of green steam shot from the gem and splashed against the mirror. A thick and clotted liquid formed on the glass, oozing down onto her dresser, covering most of the surface and then rising, taking shape, growing into a creature perhaps two feet high and almost as wide.
    Karen was too shocked to scream. She stood, silently