The First Adventure

by Courtney Toth (Corky)

 

Chapter 1

 

Okay, Jo isn't really a good name to describe me.

I'm fairly tall, quite skinny, with green eyes and blonde hair with red streaks in it, which reaches down just below my neck.

I'm quite sporty, I play in the school basketball team. Mum isn't anything like me. She's one of those people who think everything is serious. On April fool's day, I put yellow paint in mum's orange juice. When she realised what I had done, she sternly said that the yellow paint could poison and sometimes kill people. I knew she was lying. When she has a trick played on her shes always trying to make it sound drastic.

Enough about her, now, I must get on with the story.

Me and my best friend Hammy were waiting for the school bus to arrive. We were looking at the notices on the local newsagents window. It was rather sunny and many people had taken off their sweatshirts. Hammy would now and then toss back her brown hair and look over her shoulder in case the school bus had arrived.

Hammy was tall and skinny like me. She had brown hair; which reached down a bit further than mine. Her eyes were bright blue and her skin was tanned like mine. We were good friends.

 

Suddenly our school bus roared round of the street corner, and we got on.

 

Chapter 2

 

Everything seemed pretty normal, but something didn't seem right. Leaning on a seat at the back of the bus was a box in the shape of a small capsule. We sat on the two seats beside it. No one seemed to claim it, so it appeared to either be abandoned or unwanted, which both meant the same thing, so Hammy ventured to pick it up, which didn't seem to be a problem to anyone else.

As she held it, it appeared to have a soft green glow from within, and without warning, Hammy opened the box. Then it happened.

Before we knew what was happening, we found ourselves in this western village. We were dressed like cowgirls and were stood outside a saloon bar.

"Ur - Jo, is this some kinda joke?" said Hammy.

"Not that I know of," I replied.

We walked into the saloon bar, and looked around. It was just like a saloon bar I could picture in my mind.

People in Western type clothes strode around the bar, ordering pints of beer or shandy. 'Wanted' signs had been nailed on the wall and triggers of guns sprouted from pockets.

"Okay, one minute we're on the school bus - the next were in a western extravaganza," I said to myself.

Hammy didn't reply. Hammy wasn't even there!

"Ham, hammy - if you're hiding - this aint a joke!" I cried. Everyone looked at me - but I didn't care. Hammy was gone - gone.

 

Chapter 3

 

My best friend had disappeared. Vanished into thin air. Without hesitation, I ran out of the bar, jumped on a horse, and started to gallop around the buildings trying to find Hammy.

But she wasn't there.

In sheer temper, I started to gallop around a cactus, driving my horse crazy. Very soon the horse could stand it no longer. It lifted up his front legs and send me flying into the cactus. I pulled out the spines and got up. Where was Hammy? This was bad, very bad.

"Um - I hate to break the news, Ham, but if you can hear me please come out," I said.

No reply.

I wondered what could have happened to her. Did she get kidnapped? Was she just hiding? Or was this whole thing just a crazy dream? I couldn't answer any of these questions. I was wondering where she was much more than what had happened to her. I walked into an abandoned house.

I forgot about Hammy and started to explore.

The kitchen stove was still lit and suddenly I heard a BOO from behind me...

 

Chapter 4

 

I quickly turned around.

"Ha! Gotcha!" cried Hammy.

"Were you scared, were you?"

I replied, truthfully, "You did have me for a minute, Ham, I was looking for you everywhere."

"You didn't see me?" She said.

I was looking at the hanging-time posters at the other side of the bar. I wouldn't mind going to the one at noon, you know," she added.

Well I couldn't disagree with that.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go! It's 11.55a.m. already!" I said.

Then we had the problem.

You see, the house was big and there were passages and tunnels everywhere.

"Um - Hammy, which way did you come in," I said.

"Dunno," she replied.

We stared at each other.

We heard footsteps and the sound of a gun being loaded.

Someone was in the house with us.

We were in trouble.

Big trouble.

 

Chapter 5

 

Our mouths dropped open.

I could hear Hammy shivering.

"All right," I said, "I suggest we get moving. Ya know what I mean, see where we end up."

Hammy nodded.

We started walking down a long passage and soon we came to a junction. We chose the one on our right and found ourselves in a room. There was a strange looking cupboard in the corner of the room.

"Wonder whats in dere," Hammy said.

I opened the door. A black spider crawled out and I peered in. The cupboard opened out into a long tunnel.

"Pssst! Ham," I whispered. "Follow me."

Hammy got onto her hands and knees and started to follow me.

As we crawled along, I started to wonder how in the first place did we get into Mexico City, or whatever it was called.

"Hey, Ham," I said, peering round and staring into her blue eyes. "How did we get here in the first place?"

Hammy shrugged and then she looked at me.

"On second thoughts," she added, "I think I know what's the problem."

And she leaned over and whispered everything in my ear.

 

Chapter 6

 

I had found a grill in the floor. It opened easily and Hammy and I peered in.

A man with a gun was sitting in a chair, guarding a fluorescent green switch - exactly the same as Hammy had told me.

"All we have to do is push it and will break the time link and be back home," said Hammy.

"Oh," she added, "how do we get past that man?"

"Got any good ideas?" I asked.

"Yes," she replied.

She told me and we emptied out our pockets. A stick, two paper clips, a piece of bubble gum and a piece of string. Perfect!

We put away the paper clips and tied the string around the stick to make a fishing rod. Then I chewed the bubble gum and stuck it on the end of the string.

I lowered it down until it stuck to the man's hat.

Hammy then hoisted it up, making it look like a ghost had grabbed it.

The man made a high-pitched squeal and cried out: "Me 'at it - it's 'aunted!"

And with that he ran out of the room, just as we had planned.

 

Chapter 7

 

"Come on," I said. "Let's get down there."

We climbed down with a bit of difficulty but we got down in the end.

We ran over to the switch.

"Push it," said Hammy.

I looked around.

"Please, Ham, just a minute," I said.

All the books on the shelves, all the guns nailed to the wall - they were so real, but I found myself still asking myself - was this whole thing just a dream?

It couldn't be.

I turned back to Hammy.

"I'm ready," I said.

We stretched out her hands and pulled the switch.

 

My whole life seemed to flash before me and I found myself back on the school bus.

The capsule had disappeared.

"What an adventure," I said to Hammy.

"Yeah!" She replied.

And we smiled.