Science Fiction for Young Readers, grade 4 up
Story by Terry Gibson ©

     Playing it safe, Tab said, "You are 
wondering how I got up here, Ms. Tempest, 
aren't you?" There were murmurs as she rose 
steadily higher, and with a bang, she 
dropped the bookcase.  "I can go up higher 
still, (and did) just by the power of 
thought."  (Minor fib.)  She floated 
horizontally, well out of reach of even the 
tallest person.  She was ready.
     Ms. Tempest, who had pretended to be 
calm, finally found her voice.  She'd calm 
her voice even if she died in the act!  
"Tabitha, get down this ins--"
     "Up here is--"
     "--tant!"
     "...very nice, actually."
     So quickly did Tab cover the d-word 
that there was only a small wobble in her 
position, followed by a further rise.
     Their teacher was helpless, and 
everyone knew it.  "Ain'tcha gonna get her 
down?"  Tom-Tom asked.  He'd taunt ANYbody!
     "Up, up, up," Tab said to herself, 
rising.
     "No," Ms. Tempest said, gathering 
Tab's papers into a heap with trembling 
hands, but no one noticed the cold sweat 
running down the teacher's back.  Appearing 
fully controlled, Ms. Tempest said, "She 
obviously likes it up there."
     Tab had let herself rise to a level 
with the lights, and she said "down" for 
every "up" she heard to control it.  
Nobody could deny her ability to float now!  
She could just see her teacher, complaining 
about it at the office. They'd say Ms. 
Tempest had really blown her mind.  To Tab's 
surprise, she heard the teacher call up 
Willy with his project.
     Hey!  One by one they were all getting 
back to work.  What was going on?  This was 
not normal class behaviour!  What had the 
teacher said, anyhow?  Yet there she was, 
checking Willy's work, and only a few 
glanced up at her. Even Akim couldn't help 
her anymore.
     Drat!  "Did you know there's a 
badminton bird up here in the lights?  
Shouldn't we tell the custodian?" Tab asked.
     No answer.  So let it stay. And phooee!

     Tab would have felt a lot better if she 
had been close enough to see how Ms. Tempest's 
hands shook.  As it was, Tab had a let-down 
feeling as she eased herself down with a 
long string of "down' words when the lunch 
bell rang. About to pick up her papers and 
leave quietly, she was stopped by a very 
irritated Ms. Tempest. "I'm sorry," she 
murmured.  "Say again?"
     "That was a fine display, Tabitha," the
teacher said sarcastically.  "So you're into 
the occult now, I see."
     "No!  Really I'm not!"
     "You did a good job of disrupting--"
     (Tab rose into the air; "Slow down," 
she said automatically.)
     "...the class.  Fortunately the class 
was wiser than you."
     Who'd have thought it could go so wrong?
     Ms. Tempest would have gone on and on, 
but Tab said, "Please excuse me," and fled.


     In the schoolyard, she found Akim and 
Greggy waiting for her.  "Well, that didn't 
work so well, did it?" she asked.
     "Actually, I was really impressed," 
Akim reassured her.  "The kids all saw you, 
and Ms. T. was speechless.  She was really 
nervous after that.  
     Greg asked, "So why didn't it work this 
time?" 
    "I got Ms. Tempest for a bit, and the 
class got a few laughs, but it didn't work."  
Tab shook her head.  "Nobody got excited 
about it."
     "How come?"
     "Well, she didn't yell, or faint, or 
anything.  I bet she wimps out and doesn't 
even tell them in the office."
     "But she won't forget it," Akim said.  
"I heard Willy say that her hands were 
shaking so much she couldn't hold his pages 
to read them."
     "Really!  Hey, that's great!"  Knowing 
that, Tab could eat her lunch cheerfully.  
"Now," she said, "help me plan something 
really awesome for Longshanks."
     As they laughed over some pretty funny
possibilities, Tab saw Elsbeth watching 
them.  "Shush," she said.  "Let's not give 
away all our secrets."
     Elsbeth walked by their table, and 
without stopping, said, "They're calling it 
Terminal Tabby  Disease."
     "Terminal.  Well, that's a jolly piece 
of news." Tab looked at the two boys as she 
reached for a sandwich.  "Time to blast 'em 
all out of the water!"
     Between bites they put their heads 
together to brainstorm the next step.  
"What about a demo here at noon?"
     "Right.  Like saying loudly 'I'M GONNA
UPCHUCK!'" (She rose suddenly) "It will only 
upset (higher) everybody."  People were too 
busy eating and talking to notice.  "Down to 
Earth," she said.
     Akim observed, "First you have to catch 
their attention."
     As they talked in low whispers, their 
heads close together, Tabitha suddenly 
thought that the girls might actually envy 
her.  To be huddled like this with two such 
cute boys--so what if one was her brother?  
Akim didn't have any idea what she was 
thinking, but wow, he was going to be one
gorgeous man!  And he was just about her 
best friend!
     "What do you think, Tab?" Greg asked.
     "What--?  I'm sorry.  Say again."  He 
did, and she thought it was a neat idea.  
So much for private little daydreams!  She'd 
explore it in her journal tonight.
     Elsbeth joined them when they were 
outdoors, and Tab reminded, "Greg, don't 
forget we need to have a super fight to put 
you near the office by afternoon recess."
     "That should be easy.  I spend much of 
my time avoiding fights.  If I make it loud, 
maybe I won't get hurt too much that way."
     Akim promised to bring the teacher 
before it could get too bloody.
     "Maybe I can help too," Elsbeth offered.
"You're trying to help Mr. Player, aren't 
you?"
     "Who said?"
     "Nobody.  I just thought...like, he's 
in trouble because of you...and, well...I 
want to help him too."
     "Great," Tab said.  "Would you and 
maybe Maria fight with me during the 
afternoon recess? Pretend to be really, 
really mad at me?  Call me names and hit 
me and pull my hair and everything?"
     "I don't know about Maria, but sure.  
Just don't hurt me for real."
     "We have to make it look bad enough 
that they'll send me and Greggy to stand 
by the principal's office.  To interrupt-- 
oops."  From above, she finished, 
"interrupt" (She went up some more and hung 
there in the air.) "...that meeting they're 
having in there.  We need an excuse to be
there."
     Elsbeth who had been seeing Tab hanging 
out over their heads a lot lately, said, "I 
know how to pretend cry so everyone thinks 
it's real."
     "Tears and all?"
     "Sure.  Fools my parents every time, 
and they know me.  I'll tell you how stupid 
I thought you were to show off like that 
in class--"
     Tab actually felt hostile at that.  
"Stupid?" she said, hanging menacingly 
overhead.
     "Just fooling, just fooling!"
     "Okay."
     "Now I'll go and see if I can get Maria 
and maybe Sally...."  With that, Elsbeth 
went away.
     Right after lunch, Tab appeared at Mrs. 
Mallow's door.  "Mrs. Mallow, you said to 
come and talk to you if I needed help?"  At 
her old teacher's smile and nod, Tab said, 
"Well I need help!"
     "I hoped you'd come.  There are some 
wild tales being told."
     "I know.  And it's Wednesday."
     "What about Wednesday?"
     "That psychologist...  You know-- "
     "Christina Blake?"
     "Yes.  She's coming to see me again 
today, and really, I don't need her anymore.  
How do I tell them that?"
     "Directly.  Say 'Thank you for all 
you've done, but I'm okay now.'  I hope it's 
true." 
     "Why wouldn't it be?"
     "Well, you seem to have flipped out 
Miss Blair and Ms. Tempest.  I've never 
heard such nonsense."
     "Maybe it's not nonsense."
     "Oh, it had to be.  They say you 
floated."
     "I did."
     "What did you say?"
     "I floated."
     Mrs. Mallow was confused.  She knew 
Tab well enough; Tab wouldn't lie to her, 
but...  "What is it-- some kind of mass 
hypnosis?"
     "No, I float.  I rise off the ground 
and I hang in the air."  Tab was tempted to 
show it, but decided not.  Not yet, anyway.
     "But that's impossible."
     "I know.  That's what makes it such 
fun."
     "Fun!  You've sent a couple of 
perfectly sane teachers up a tree, and you 
call it fun!" 
     "Well some teachers send us--"
     "Tabitha, please.  I'm not here to 
apologize for other teachers, but neither 
will I listen to nonsense.  This is serious."
     "I know.  Very serious.  Mr. Player is 
in trouble because of me.  That's why I'm 
doing this."
     "I don't understand.  What does his 
problem have to do with upsetting other 
teachers?"
     "Lots.  Because I want them to 
understand what really happened.  Mr. Player 
saved my life."
     "Oh don't be dramatic, Tabitha."
     "I'm not, Mrs. Mallow.  I was having a
very powerful floating attack.  You've heard 
of Tabby Disease?  Anyhow I went UP like 
this," (Tab rose above Mrs.  Mallow's head.) 
"and I was outside in the yard, afraid I'd 
keep on going higher and higher."
     Mrs. Mallow was bug-eyed, with her 
mouth hanging open.  Tab felt sorry for her, 
and added, "It was before I knew that I 
wouldn't just keep on going UP" (She bobbed 
up to the ceiling) "like this into the sky."
     Mrs. Mallow said nothing at all.  She 
just stared at Tabitha, who looked down at 
her from beside the fluorescent lights.
     "I really need your help, Mrs. Mallow."
     "To-- To-- To get you down?"
     Tab descended to about half way.  "No,
I've found out since then how to get DOWN."
She landed hard on the floor.  
     "It happened before I could control it.  
You've got to tell everybody that this is 
the reason Mr. Player carried me like that 
into the school.  If I hadn't 
hung on so hard, I'd have slid UP like this," 
(she flipped up) "out of his hands and away 
into the sky.  Gone forever.  They HAVE to 
know that, Mrs. Mallow."
     "It would help Mr. Player all right, 
but they won't believe ME."  She laughed 
hysterically.  "I don't-- I don't even, no.  
No, I can't believe it. I can't believe it."
     Tab's heart sank.  "But you saw it."
     "I know.  And Miss Blair and 
Ms. Tempest saw it too, and they don't 
believe it either.  I'm sure a hundred kids 
saw it, but nobody believes it, Tabitha!"
     "But you have to!  Because it's true."
Tab knew the little kids would be coming in 
the door any moment.  "Please, won't you 
help me, Mrs. Mallow?"
     "It takes a lot of getting used to."
     "Miss, may we come in?"  Mrs. Mallow's 
Grade 3 class had arrived.  "Yes, of course.  
Sit down quickly.  Tabitha has something to 
show you."
     "Mrs. Mallow--"  Tab hadn't heard the 
bell.
     "No, Tabitha.  You won't get into 
trouble.  I'll give you a note telling I 
detained you."
     "Okay."  Why not?  Maybe the younger 
kids would believe it.  She listened while 
Mrs. Mallow told them they were about to see 
something unbelievable, but they would be 
seeing it with their own eyes, not on 
television with computer animation.
     "There are are no lights or mirrors 
either," Tab assured them.  "Shall I start?"
     The show went well.  Bending the truth 
just a little, Tab told them, "All I have 
to do is think UP, (She rose abruptly, and 
stayed above their heads.) and I float."  
Tab knew that the little kids were more 
receptive to new ideas than the seniors who 
knew everything already, but she hadn't 
expected so many questions.  She went up
and down, she hovered, she moved sideways 
by pushing off, "as if the air was water."  
The kids must have liked it because they 
clapped when she was done.
     She'd be late for class; the door was 
closed.  Time for Operation Freakout.

TAKE ME TO BOOK THREE