The Skeletons in City Park

by Thomas Troupe

  That must be his wife, Flo thought.

  “It’s a perfect day for the park, my dear,” Mr. Panji said.

  “Is that him?” Furry whispered.

  Flo nodded and watched as Mr. and Mrs. Panji crossed the street. Mr. Panji whistled slightly off-key as the couple continued along the path toward City Park with their picnic basket.

  Furry peered between two cars and watched them disappear into the trees. “Well, I can tell you one thing,” he said. “Getting this talisman back won’t be a picnic.”

  Flo groaned and rolled her eyes at the terrible pun. “Can we save the jokes for later?” she said. “We have a talisman to find.”

  Flo looked both ways and quickly pushed her bike across the street. Furry followed after her and together they headed down the same path the Panjis had taken. They spotted the couple sitting on a fleece blanket and eating their picnic lunch.

  “Do you think he has the talisman with him?” Furry asked quietly. He watched the couple like a hungry beast eyeing his next meal. Flo knew Furry was a vegetarian, but the look in his eyes was definitely saying something else.

  “Well, he said he wanted to give the brooch to his wife,” Flo whispered back.

  As Furry and Flo watched, Mr. Panji reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, round object. When his hand opened, the bright blue stone glinted in the late summer sun.

  “That’s it,” Flo hissed and grabbed a fistful of Furry’s fur in excitement. The werewolf let out a little yelp of surprise, and they both ducked behind a giant tree as Mr. Panji turned to look their way.

  When they peeked out again, Flo’s heart almost stopped. Emerging from the line of trees and marching straight toward Mr. and Mrs. Panji was the Bone Horde.

  “D-d-do you s-s-see what —” Flo stammered.

  “Yeah,” Furry interrupted. “There they are.”

  Before the Panjis could catch sight of the skeleton army marching their way, Furry ran toward them. He growled and barked as he closed in on the poor picnickers. Mr. and Mrs. Panji quickly stood up and bolted toward the park path.

  Flo hopped on her bike, adjusted her lunchbox in her hand, and chased after Furry and the fleeing couple. She was grateful they hadn’t noticed the skeletons appearing from nowhere. But as she rode past their blanket and basket, Flo felt bad. So much for their nice picnic, she thought.

  CHAPTER 8

  What’s he doing? Flo wondered as she watched Furry snap at the Panjis’ heels. She knew Furry could run twice as fast, but it seemed like the werewolf was holding back. Glancing behind her, Flo saw the skeletons were crowding the park’s path.

  “Furry!” Flo cried. “Do something! They’re coming!”

  “Someone call for help!” Mr. Panji shouted. “This dog in pants wants to bite us!”

  The werewolf growled again, making the poor couple cry out in fear. Flo felt awful. Their romantic picnic had been ruined, and now a nine-year-old werewolf was scaring them half to death.

  I hope he knows what he’s doing, Flo thought. She could hear the click-clack of bony feet on the pavement close behind her.

  Up ahead, Mr. Panji still grasped the talisman in his fingers. It glinted gold and blue in the sun. Furry’s head bobbed up and down in time with Mr. Panji’s swaying hand. As his hand swung back, Furry surged forward and licked Mr. Panji’s wrist. The slobbery kiss caught the man off guard, and he let go of the brooch.

  Furry quickly snatched it up before it hit the sidewalk and closed his werewolf lips around it. Almost instantly, the sound of clattering feet ceased. Flo turned, glancing down the path once more. Every one of the skeletons had disappeared.

  Furry darted off the path and through the trees. Mr. and Mrs. Panji, unaware they were no longer being chased, continued fleeing through the park.

  Flo steered her bike off the path after Furry, jumping over exposed roots and veering around rocks. The contents of her lunchbox rattled with every bump. She blasted through some prickly bushes and into a small, grassy clearing where Furry stood on all fours.

  “What happened?” Flo asked. “All of the skeletons just disappeared. Did you tell the talisman to do that?”

  Furry shook his head, but looked around cautiously. “Day dill ear,” he mumbled. He had the Bone Talisman in his mouth, which made it hard for Flo to understand him.

  “What did you say?” She hopped off her bike and laid it down on the ground. “Spit that thing out before you swallow it, okay?”

  Furry did as he was told and dropped the talisman onto the grass. “I said they’re still here,” he said in a clearer voice. “And they’re close.”

  As if on cue, the clearing was suddenly surrounded by skeletons. In the time it took Flo to blink, they were everywhere. Some wore helmets, while others had leather belts tied around their exposed bones. A few had pieces of armor affixed to their arms and legs, while still others carried shields. The ones with the rusty swords made Flo especially nervous.

  “Yikes!” Flo exclaimed, backing away from the edge of the trees. She huddled closer to Furry, both of them eyeing the skeletons carefully. None of them made a move. “How did they appear again?”

  “I don’t know,” Furry whispered. A low growl began to rumble in his throat. “I didn’t tell them to.”

  Flo hadn’t said anything either. She stepped back again and a flash of metal caught her eye. At her feet, she saw the talisman shining in the sun and bent down to pick it up. “Oh gross, Furry,” she said with a groan. “It’s all slobbery.”

  Flo turned toward the shade and used the edge of her shirt to wipe off the werewolf spit. As she rubbed the talisman, the skeletons briefly disappeared.

  Seconds later, they were back as if they’d always been there.

  “What did you do, Flo?” Furry cried.

  “I don’t . . .” Flo started to say. Then she realized something. “I think it’s the sun! Watch!”

  To prove her point, Flo turned back so that the talisman was in the shade once again. Instantly, the skeletons disappeared. When she turned around again and let the sun hit the brooch, the skeletons immediately reappeared in the clearing.

  “That explains why we didn’t see them out here until the repairman pulled out the talisman,” Furry said. “His pocket kept it out of the sun!”

  “He must have taken it out while we were in school, too,” Flo said. “That would explain why they were lurking around my classroom window.”

  The entire Bone Horde army just stood there with their empty eyes. They seemed to be awaiting a command. A chill raced up Flo’s back and she held the talisman up to the sun. As she did, she noticed a secret etching in the sapphire. When the sun hit it just right, she saw a faint carving that looked like a skull.

  “Well, this isn’t so bad,” Flo said. “At least they didn’t attack us.”

  The words had barely left her mouth when the Bone Horde sprang into action. They ran toward Furry and Flo with their arms raised and jaws open in a silent battle cry.

  CHAPTER 9

  Flo tried to grab her bike but found herself yanked back by a furry paw.

  “There’s no time!” Furry shouted as the skeletons closed in. “We have to run for it!”

  Flo sprinted with Furry toward the edge of the trees and down another narrow path. We’re never going to make it back to school at this rate, she thought.

  “What are we doing?” she hollered as they ran. “We just need to cover up the talisman!”

  Flo stopped in her tracks and shaded the talisman to block out the sun. But the skeletons just kept coming. Not a single one of them flickered or showed any signs of disappearing . . . or stopping.

  “Uh-oh,” Flo said as they tore off down the path once more.

  “Maybe they can’t disappear in attack mode,” Furry suggested, plowing through the underbrush on all fours. “What did you say to make them come a
fter us, anyway?”

  “I don’t know!” Flo replied. “Something about being glad that they weren’t attacking us?”

  “Maybe they only heard the last part! They must have thought it was a command since you were holding the talisman when you said it!” Furry said.

  “Great, now I’m afraid to say anything ever again!” Flo yelled.

  “Well, you’d better say something to get them to back off!” Furry growled.

  “Okay,” Flo cried. She was short of breath, but raised the talisman skyward. “Hey, boneheads! No more attacking!”

  But Flo’s newest command just made the skeletons crazier. They swiped and clawed at the ground with their bony hands. The skeletons wielding swords swung them back and forth, slicing low-hanging branches from trees.

  “Yeah, that didn’t work,” Flo muttered.

  In the distance, she heard dogs barking. The thick cover of trees in the park kept them hidden for the time being, but Flo knew they’d soon spill out near the fenced-in area where people let their dogs run free.

  “We must be close to the dog park,” Flo shouted. “What are we going to do? We can’t lead these guys to the people out there.”

  Furry barked and howled in excitement. “You just gave me the best idea ever! Get those skeletons to follow you back toward the clearing.”

  “What? Are you crazy?” Flo shook her head. “They’ll get me!”

  Furry just smiled. “Trust me,” he said. “I’ll be back before you know it.”

  Before Flo could protest, Furry took off like a gray streak through the woods. Flo rounded a cluster of trees and headed back. “This is dumb,” she groaned. “I should be in school.”

  But Flo knew there was no other choice. She held the talisman high and gave the Bone Horde their next command. “Come get me, you hollow heads,” Flo shouted.

  The skeletons immediately moved toward Flo with their bony arms outstretched. Flo leapt over a rotted fallen tree and took off running toward the clearing. By the time she got there, she was tired and out of breath.

  “This is the worst . . . plan . . . ever,” Flo gasped. She spotted her bike on the ground where she’d left it, but she was too tired to try to ride off on it. She tripped and fell, landing inches from the back tire.

  When Flo sat up, she saw skeletons closing in from all sides. They had her completely surrounded, forming a circle of bones ready for battle. This is it, she thought desperately. I’m going to get eaten by a bunch of skeletons.

  Flo swung her lunchbox back and forth, catching the closest skeleton in the shin. The blow shattered the skeleton’s leg, and down it went. The bone warrior managed to catch itself with its hands and crawled forward, snapping his teeth at the cuff of Flo’s jeans.

  “Get out of here!” Flo cried, hoping for any command that would get the skeletons to leave her alone.

  But nothing seemed to work. One skeleton grabbed her leg, while another scratched her arm with a bony finger. Flo swung her lunchbox again and again, knocking bones loose, but it wasn’t enough. They kept coming.

  Flo screamed and covered her face with her arms. Just as she prepared to become a skeleton snack, she heard the stampede of a hundred small feet approaching.

  CHAPTER 10

  Furry howled a long, loud battle cry. The echo of other howls ringing through City Park soon joined his. There were big barks and small yelps. When Flo opened her eyes, she couldn’t believe it — there were dogs everywhere!

  In moments, the skeletons were engaged in battle with a new enemy. This time their foes had fur, sharp teeth, and a taste for bones.

  “Where did these guys come from?” Flo shouted, picking herself up off the ground.

  “The dog park!” Furry shouted. The werewolf leapt in the air and locked his jaws onto a skeleton’s ribcage. He jerked his head sideways, tossing the bone warrior into one of his fellow soldiers. Both skeletons clattered apart in a heap of limbs.

  Flo watched in amazement as a bulldog tackled another skeleton, knocking its skull loose from the spinal column. A pair of poodles began chewing on another skeleton’s arms and legs. Everywhere she looked, dogs fought off the Bone Horde.

  Flo grinned. It was the perfect army to sic on the bony minions. She turned and ducked as a skeleton’s rusty sword swished over her head.

  “Oooh,” Flo gasped, realizing how close a call that had been. She swung her lunchbox and slammed the skeleton right in the jawbone. A handful of teeth dropped out of the skeleton’s mouth. Still on its feet, it swung again at Flo. She raised her lunchbox up and blocked the sword’s blow. A large dent creased the box’s lid.

  All right that does it, Flo fumed. Now I’m mad.

  With a screech, she cocked her arm back and swung the Dyno-Katz lunchbox with everything she had. It connected with the skeleton’s clavicle, loosening both arms at once. With a well-placed kick, she blasted the warrior’s pelvis. The bone soldier dropped into a pile of pieces.

  “Bone appétit,” Flo said with a snarl.

  Furry thrashed another skeleton back and forth by the leg. He dragged it over to the tree and with a heave, launched it against the tree’s trunk. The skeleton exploded in a shower of bones.

  “They keep rebuilding themselves and coming at us!” Furry shouted.

  “Are you serious?” Flo cried. “Knocking them apart isn’t enough?” She remembered poor Curtis back at the apartment building. If the skeletons were coming back together, he really had his hands full. Flo had to do something quickly.

  “I think we have to destroy that talisman!” Furry shouted.

  Flo looked down at the talisman in her hand. I hope this works, she thought. She threw it on the ground, stomped on it, and picked it up again. The talisman remained undamaged. When she looked around, the skeletons and dogs continued to battle.

  “It won’t break!” Flo said. “I don’t know how to get these guys to stop fighting.”

  Instantly, all of the skeleton warriors froze in place.

  “Hey!” Furry let out a howl of excitement. “What did you do?”

  Flo tossed the talisman in the air and caught it. She smiled, like she’d known what she was doing all along. “I just said to —”

  “Better yet,” Furry interrupted, “don’t say anything!”

  Flo nodded. As long as she held the troublesome Bone Talisman, she didn’t know what her words would make the skeletons do next.

  Furry looked in the direction of the dog park. “Their owners will be here any minute, looking for them,” he cried. “We have to clean this mess up before anyone sees it.”

  Flo nodded. “Yeah. I don’t want to explain a park full of skeleton bones.”

  Furry barked three times, and the dogs all gathered around. They sat in a group and watched the werewolf intently as he barked at them. The other dogs seemed to be absorbing his every word. A golden retriever near the back looked familiar to Flo, but she couldn’t figure out where she’d seen him before.

  A moment later, Furry barked a final bark. “Hop on your bike, Flo,” the little werewolf said quickly. “They’re going to follow you back to the apartment building.”

  “Um . . . okay,” Flo said. She opened her lunchbox and dropped the talisman inside. With a tug, she pulled her bike up, threw her leg over, and started pedaling toward the main path. When she glanced back, she saw a parade of dogs trotting closely behind her. Each one carried a pile of bones in its mouth.

  “Come on, dogs,” Flo called, finally catching on to Furry’s plan. “I know a great spot to bury those!”

  * * *

  In no time at all, Flo and the dogs arrived at the apartment’s service entrance. She propped open the door and led them downstairs to the laundry room. She shoved it open to find Curtis inside, sweeping bones into the crack.

  “Hoo boy,” Curtis cried. He adjusted his thick glasses and wiped his sweaty foreh
ead with the edge of his shirt. “I don’t know what you kids did, but those skeletons finally gave up the fight.”

  Flo shrugged. “I just told them to stop,” she said. “Simple.”

  Just then, the parade of dogs came through the doorway.

  “Oh, and we brought the pieces with us to put back where they belong,” Flo said. She led the dogs to the crack. After more barked orders from Furry, the dogs dropped the disassembled Bone Horde back into the blue crack in the floor piece by piece.

  WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

  Once all of the bones were gone, Flo opened her Dyno-Katz lunchbox and pulled out the Bone Talisman. “I should probably throw this in too, huh?”

  “Definitely,” Furry agreed. He grabbed a juice box from Flo’s lunchbox and drained the drink in three quick swallows. When it was gone, he let out a loud belch and transformed back into his human form.

  “Geez,” Flo said. “I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to that.” She studied the Bone Talisman for another moment before tossing it into the glowing crack. “See you later, suckers.”

  WHOOSH!

  CHAPTER 11

  With the Bone Horde back where they belonged, Curtis helped Furry and Flo load the helpful dogs into the back of his truck. As they drove back toward the dog park, Furry turned to Flo in the front seat. “Sorry I left you alone with the Bone Horde,” he said.

  Flo shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just glad you and the dogs got there in time! A little sooner would’ve been better, though,” she said with a grin.