"The other road is shorter." He kept on talking all the way to the high school. He kept talking all the time until he stopped to let Baartock off the bus. Baartock wasn't listening to him. He was thinking about showandtell.

Chapter 13

Monday morning, Baartock was down by the side of the road, waiting anxiously for the school bus to arrive. When he had asked his mother what 'weekend' and 'Monday' were, she had explained that many people didn't work everyday, and took two days every week to do other things.

While trolls like to work everyday until the job is done and then rest; humans like to take little rests every week, she told him. He would have to wait two extra days, until Monday, for school and showandtell.

She decided that he would need to know, so she taught him the human names for the days of the week.

There were dark clouds overhead when Baartock went down the hill to wait for the bus, but it wasn't raining yet. It had gotten really cloudy the day before. Baartock remembered the human name for that day was Sunday. His father had said that they were going to have a lot of rain. Baartock liked it when there was a lot of rain, like there had been during the summer. Then there were lots of pools and mud to go splashing in, and there was water running down hill under his bridge.

He liked to hide under it then, because it was even more like a real troll bridge.

He was happy to see the school bus drive up. He wanted to get to school for showandtell. He climbed into the school bus and sat on the front seat.

"Hey, Baartock. Do you know where the high school is? From right here?" Mr. Barnes asked, looking at him.

Baartock just pointed and said "That way."

Mr. Barnes stopped to think about it, then he said, "You're right. How about to your school?"

Baartock pointed again, in a different direction.

"You know, you're a regular little compa.s.s," Mr. Barnes said as he started to drive off.

Baartock didn't know what a compa.s.s was, but any troll could give directions. It was easy.

They got to school earlier than they had on Friday, and Baartock went around to the playground. Jason wasn't there, so Baartock went over to the swings to wait for him. Soon both Jason and Jerry were coming around the corner of the school to the playground. They were talking about what they had done over the weekend. Jerry said that he had been to see a movie. That didn't sound very exciting to Baartock, though he wasn't sure what a 'movie' was. Jason seemed interested though and asked all about it.

Soon the first bell rang and Baartock went into the cla.s.sroom. He wanted to get ready for showandtell. Mrs. s...o...b..chner was at her desk and she called him over.

"I had a talk with Mrs. Jackson, and I think I should go talk to your mother," she said. "Maybe you could bring something a little less trollish for lunch."

Baartock didn't understand what she wanted to talk to his mother about, but he said, "Mother home now."

"I can't go right now," said Mrs. s...o...b..chner, "but maybe sometime later this week. Did you bring something for show-and-tell?"

"Yes," said Baartock.

"Will you tell me what you brought?"

Baartock had wanted it to be a surprise, but he told her. Mrs.

s...o...b..chner listened carefully as Baartock explained. Finally she asked, "Do you know how to use it?"

Baartock nodded.

Then she said, "I'll have to ask Mrs. Jackson if it's all right. You put your things away and I'll go talk to her about it now." She got up from her desk and went out the door.

All the children had come in when the second bell rang. Mrs.

s...o...b..chner came hurrying into the cla.s.sroom.

"All right. Take your seats and settle down," she said to the cla.s.s.

She came over to Baartock. "Mrs. Jackson said that you could show it to the cla.s.s, but it has to be outside on the playground. And she wants to be there."

The morning went by so slowly for Baartock. He couldn't keep his thoughts on what they were doing. He wanted it to be time for showandtell. Finally, Mrs. Jackson came into the cla.s.sroom.

"Cla.s.s," Mrs. s...o...b..chner said, "It's time for show-and-tell. Baartock has brought something that I think you'll all want to see, but he will have to show you outside. Since it looks like rain, I think he should be first. Everybody please line up by the door and we'll go out and see what Baartock brought."

Mrs. Jackson came over to Baartock and said, "I've never seen this.

Can you really make it work?"

Baartock nodded, and went over to his cubby to get his bag with his surprise for showandtell.

When they were all outside gathered around Mrs. s...o...b..chner on part of the playground where there wasn't any gra.s.s, she said, "Baartock, show the cla.s.s what you brought and tell them about it."

He came into the middle of the cla.s.s. "You show me fire drill," he said. "But no fire. I show you fire drill that make fire." He held out a little bow, a straight stick, and two small blocks of wood.

"Will you show the cla.s.s how it works?" asked Mrs. Jackson.

Baartock knelt down and put one of the blocks on the ground and put some tree bark next to it. Then he put the straight stick in a small hole in that block, wrapped the bowstring around the stick, and holding the second block in his hand put it on top of the stick. Then he started to work the bow back and forth.

"This fire drill make fire," he said again.

"Does this really work?" somebody asked.

"We were supposed to learn how to use these in scouts," said Mrs.

s...o...b..chner, as Baartock worked the bow back and forth. "But none of us could make them work."

Before she could say anything else, the bark that Baartock had put next to the block was starting to smoke. Then it was smoking a lot, and Baartock dropped the fire drill and picked up the bark and started to blow on it. And it burst into flame.

He dropped the burning bark on the ground, and picked up the bow and stick. "Fire drill," he said.

"But how does it work?" somebody wanted to know.

"Wood get hot. Make fire," Baartock explained. He held out the bottom wood block, which was still hot. The cla.s.s gathered in closely to feel how hot it was. Mrs. Jackson was making sure that the burning bark was all put out.

Just then it started to rain, big heavy drops.

"Everybody back inside," called Mrs. s...o...b..chner. "Don't line up. Just get inside quickly."

Everybody ran for the cla.s.sroom door. Baartock quickly gathered up his fire drill and he and Mrs. Jackson hurried after the cla.s.s.

When they were all settled in the cla.s.sroom again, Mrs. s...o...b..chner said, "Thank you Baartock, for showing us another kind of fire drill.

Now, does anyone else have anything for show-and-tell?"

Chapter 14