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

   Before entering the classroom, Tab 
figured Miss Longshanks had finished her 
introduction.  She floated herself up 
about the level of the top of the door, 
and let her legs rise into a comfortable 
horizontal position. It was time to 
convince people who believe what they see 
on TV, but not what is happening in front 
of their eyes, that Mr.Player is innocent 
of the terrible things they think, and so 
is she!  Then she knocked on the door and
held her breath.

     Might have known. Why would anyone 
look up?  
     "Miss, there's nobody there."  Willy 
closed the door before Tab could say 
anything.  She knocked again.  Same kid.  
Same result.
     Once more.  This time, she used a 
three-three knock, and was surprised to 
see Miss Longshanks  herself at the door, 
looking none too pleased.
     "Uh-- Miss Longshanks.  Up here."
     Instantly, as she rose, the door 
closed. Now what could she do?  She knocked 
again.  No answer.  Again.  Still no answer.  
"Down, down, down," she said softly.  Like 
a feather, she settled to the floor, and 
knocked again.  Still no answer.
     Obviously, Miss Longshanks was not 
about to let her in.  
     Now what?  
     Miss L. must have heard the story too, 
and pooh-poohed it, Tab thought.  Not 
expecting an answer, she knocked one last
time.  The door opened!
     "Yes, Tabitha," Miss Longshanks said.
"Are you ready to behave yourself?"
     What a question!  "Yes, of course."
     When Miss Longshanks stepped aside, Tab 
entered, walking normally to her place.  
While she organized her books and pencil 
case, Tab read the assignment on the 
chalkboard.  "Write a poem of fourteen lines 
ending in a rhyming couplet, OR a precis of 
no more than three paragraphs based on pages 
289 to 320..."
     No problem, she thought.  "Hey, a 
couplet!" she said softly, rising again at 
the "up" sound.  She raised her hand.  At 
the teacher's nod, she asked, "May I sharpen 
my pencil?"
     Given permission, she slid to the 
bookshelf, used the grinder, examined the 
tip, and said, "Miss Longshanks, I'm sorry 
if I upset you."
     It seemed innocuous, but Tab had to 
bend down to pick up her books from the 
shelf beside the pencil sharpener.  Her 
unsuspecting teacher took a second look as 
Tab said, "I don't mean to cause an UProar."  
Like BOING, Tab bobbed up to the top of the 
bookcase, and let her legs go horizontal.
     "Tabitha, get down."
     "This cupboard," Tab said, to fight her
teacher's word, "is okay to write on."
     "Get back to your seat, Tabitha." Long-
suffering patience in her voice, Miss 
Longshanks didn't have time for this. "You 
are disrupting the class."
     Tab looked around, and only a few had 
noticed she had gone higher.  
     Miss L. smiled sweetly.  "Move."
     "Okay."  Tab shoved off, and floated 
out over the desks, well out of reach.  The 
gentle push took her partway across, where 
she slowed to a stop directly above Karl.
     "Miss," Karl said, "There's a dirty ol' 
rain cloud over me!"
     Rolph shot an eraser at her.  
It bounced off her arm and hit Karl.
     "Hey!" Karl said.
     There was a sharp edge to the teacher's 
voice as she said, "Get down--"
     "UPdrafts!"
     "...Tabitha," she finished, but Tab 
was higher than ever.  
     What updraft? the teacher wondered,
glancing at the window.  Closed.
     Tabitha scrambled to find a lot of 
other up-words, and was ready with "I 
suppose," when her teacher spoke again.
     She did.  
     "Tabitha, get down this instant."
     "I suppose."
     "Now."
     High in the middle of the room, Tab 
made a show of trying to reach something 
from which to push off, flailing her arms 
about and kicking, but without success.
     "Willy would you run and get a 
stepladder?"
     As Willy took off, Tab smiled.  She 
ducked another eraser from Tom-Tom's 
direction, and it hit Laurie in the face.  
"Cut it out!" Laurie said.
     With it, a new game began, with small 
objects flying from all directions, 
impossible to dodge.
     The door burst open.  Willy and his
stepladder, and behind him, the vice 
principal strode in, loudly demanding, 
"What is the meaning of this UPROAR?"
     Tab zoomed to the ceiling, stuck there 
as if she were pasted.  She couldn't think 
of a "down" word.
     Her teacher's sharp tongue failed her. 

     Tab shrugged.  With a smile and her 
hands palm-up, she said, "Tabby disease, 
Mr. Striker.  Everyone knows I have Tabby
disease."  Softly, not moving her mouth, 
only her tongue said down down down down 
down down down as she gently lowered herself 
to the floor beside Karl, and walked back 
to her desk.
     Several kids applauded, and Willy 
said, "Hey, neat trick.  How'd'ya do that?"
     "Yeah, Tabby!" Rolph called.  "Tell 
us how."
     "Tabby Disease," she repeated.
     Rather pale, Miss Longshanks merely 
shrugged and turned her back.  Tabitha did 
the assignment, the only one working in the 
noisy room.
     Sudden silence.  Tab glanced over and 
saw Mrs. Meander, Mr. Striker, and Miss 
Longshanks by the door.  It was a long 
silent moment, and then all three of them 
left.  The whole class applauded this time, 
for they were unsupervised.  Weird way to 
become a hero, Tab thought.
     As a precaution, she raised herself 
back to the ceiling again locating where 
she could use the top of the lights as a 
desk.  Except for Akim and Tabitha and a 
few others, not much work was done.
     Tab  did a high-level push-off when 
the bell rang, and was one of the first to 
fly out past some very confused teachers 
just outside the open door.
     "A form of group hypnosis," Mr. Striker
decreed as they watched her bounce like a 
ball from wall to wall down the hall.


     Elsbeth, Maria, and Sally had all met 
Greggy and Akim as they came out the door 
at recess. Tab joined them as soon as she 
got out of the washroom.  The message had 
been to scatter before the fight to make it 
more convincing.
     In whispers, Maria said she had 
something special to contribute: a set of 
fresh scabs from a bike wipe out last night.
     "Blud," she said like a vampire, "Blud." 
All she had to do was pick off scabs.  They 
split.
     Greggy started it.  "You did too!" he 
yelled, and shoved Maria right off her feet.
     "Not!" she shouted, and clobbered him.
     Tab ran up and pushed at Maria who had 
gone after Greggy.  Elsbeth and Sally ran up 
to defend Maria.  Tab waited until she saw 
Akim get the teacher on duty.  When the 
teacher was watching, Tab hit Maria 
viciously with a jagged board, so blood would 
make sense.  Greggy had also sent Elsbeth 
into the most convincingly heartbreaking
bout of weeping.
     They got their way.  Maria's blood and
Elsbeth's tears were enough to send Greggy 
and Tab to the office.  Unfortunately, the 
others had to go there too.  Unable to 
discuss it while they sat in the outer 
office, all they could do was wait.
     It was a long wait, because by then, 
the fateful meeting had started.  Although 
it seemed like five hours, it was only 
three-fifteen when those at the meeting 
started coming out.  First, a dozen upset-
looking mothers and one father.  Tab 
recognized Mrs. Gunner, the chairman of the
Parent Council, and a couple of Library
volunteers.  Two men in suits came out, 
still talking softly together.  Some kind 
of school officials.  She heard one call 
the other Mr. Saxon.  Another, a small man 
with glasses and no chin, followed them.
     There was a long pause during which 
the principal's inner door remained closed.
Mrs. MacPherson sent Sally, Maria and 
Elsbeth home after taking a written 
statement from them.  "I'll let Mr. Striker 
know you are witnesses," she said, and 
shook her head at Tab and Greggy.
     Tab considered rising to the occasion, 
but couldn't see what use it would be.  
Nobody was looking.  Besides, she was in 
enough trouble already.
     Except for the principal and vice 
principal, Jeremy Player was the last to 
leave.  He walked like an old man, but he 
made the effort to nod hello to Tabitha and 
Greggy.  He looked as if he had used up all 
his smiles.
     If he wondered why they were waiting 
there, he gave no sign, and they of course 
did not tell him.  Just to look at him, 
they could tell that painful decisions 
already had been made.
     All their efforts had been too late.

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