Betty Levin - Creature Crossing

It was only by accident that Ben noticed the lizard, or whatever it was. Catching it made him feel like a hunter exposed to unknown risks. It might bite. It could even be poisonous.

First he had to make sure it was alive. Leaning over the ditch, he poked a stick through the pebbles and rattled them all around. Then, gently prodding, he nudged dead, sodden leaves that nearly buried the creature. It didnt stir. It looked a bit like a stick itself, a branch with twigs growing out. Those were its legs and feet.

He almost left it there. Since it wasnt moving, he figured he had plenty of time to get Kate and Foster to come for a look. Only then he would have to share it with them. He didnt usually mind sharing like that. But lately he had had to share too much with his little sister, Daisy. Now that she could run all over the place, including his room, she was into everything.

So Ben decided it would be cool to have something all his own.

It crossed his mind that even if the thing wasnt alive, it might still be special. What if it was a fossil out of a dinosaur egg and millions of years old? He almost hoped it would turn out to be hard as rock. He would let his parents keep it on the mantelpiece for a while to show off to their friends. A reporter might come from the local newspaper to take a picture of it, and everyone in school would know who had found this amazing specimen, previously unknown to science. The newspaper headline would read: YOUNG EXPLORER DISCOVERS FOSSIL DINOSAUR HATCHLING.

Ben had to lie on his stomach to reach whatever it was. Although a few roadside weeds were turning green, the ground was hard and cold, as if still in the grip of winter. Snow had trickled down and then frozen overnight. Bens hands were so icy when he finally scooped up the motionless creature that he could hardly feel it. Still, he made a bowl of his hands to cover it. Then he raised two fingers to peek inside just to make sure it was really there.

Was it his imagination, or had it curved itself into a semicircle? He couldnt be sure that his own hands hadnt reshaped it. Examining it, he was sorry not to see more of a dinosaur look about it. Its most vivid feature was the yellow spots on its nearly black body.

Cupping it in his hands, Ben set off for Kates house. It was the time of day when all three kids often got together to plan some project or just hang out. By now Kate would be finishing homework and ready for action. She was a better bet than Foster, who might get so involved in reading or drawing that he wouldnt bother to come out at all.

Just as Kate finally emerged from the side door, Ben became aware of a tickling inside his cupped hands. He wanted to look, to see if the creature had woken up and was moving, but the timing was wrong. Just now he had to act as though he were on top of the situation. If he played this right, Kate would beg for a single glance at his treasure.

All Kate could think of was that in two more days it would be the weekend. Then she would bring home her kitten, Blackberry, from Flint Farm. Never mind that what she had longed for was a puppy. A kitten was better than nothing.

She had done everything her parents asked. That was the bargain: to show them that she was old enough and responsible. Even though it didnt seem fair that she had to do more household stuff than her two older brothers, she hadnt complained. Anyway, the proving time was almost over. Come Saturday, Blackberry would belong to her.

As soon as she caught sight of Ben, she noticed that he was holding something and looking secretive. Ben was good at that. She figured she was supposed to ask what was up. Still, she waited for him to speak first. After all, she never held back with him. Both he and Foster had known about the kitten almost as soon as she had. So let him tell his news.

Guess what I caught, he finally said to her.

I cant. Kate could see that whatever was cupped in his hands was small. Not a kitten, she added.

Rarer than a kitten, he said. Much rarer. Guess.

She shook her head. Just show me.

Okay, he said, but you have to come close.

Kate leaned over Bens hands, which remained closed around the secret inside.

One guess, he insisted.

Kate drew back. You said youd show me. She turned away.

I will. Dont you want to see?

But Kate didnt feel like being strung along. She got enough of that from her brothers. No, she said with finality. Not anymore.

It took all her strength not to follow him. She knew exactly where he was heading. He would go right past his own house and on to Fosters. She told herself she didnt care if Foster saw the thing first, but she minded all the same. Worse, she minded that she minded. Now she was torn between running to Flint Farm to play with Blackberry and the other kittens and following Ben to Fosters house.

Then it came to her that she could invite Foster to come with his pad and draw pictures of the kittens. These days all he ever drew were shapes, not things. Some of his shape pictures were sort of interesting, but they couldnt come close to what he could make of four playful kittens rolling all over one another on the barn floor.

She took her time so that she wouldnt seem to be following Ben. She even considered stopping to see Miss Ladd, whose house was closer. But that might take too long, especially if Miss Ladd invited her to stay for tea. It would be rude to turn her down.

Instead Kate detoured around behind the Josephsons in case their dogs were in their outside pen and lonely. But they were indoors today. She could hear them barking in the cellar.

By now Ben was nowhere to be seen. She guessed he was already showing his rare thing to Foster. Kate managed not to run the rest of the way to Fosters house. She managed not to pound on the door either. She just drew a breath, rang the bell once, and waited for Foster to let her in.

Foster said, Give me a hint. What shape is it?

A few minutes ago Ben might have hinted about a fossil. Now his hatchling dinosaur seemed to be turning somersaults inside his cupped hands. He could barely keep from depositing the thing on the floor.

Its alive, he said, looking around Fosters kitchen for a safe place to put it. I dont know if its dangerous or anything.

Foster got the picture. He opened a cabinet door and hauled out a large mixing bowl. Does it need water? he asked.

Ben shrugged. I found it in the ditch.

Foster hoped it was a baby turtle. It was too early for tree frogs. Not an insect, he guessed.

Ben nodded. Not an insect. Then he couldnt stand the tickling anymore and opened his hands over the bowl.

The creature landed on its back. Its underside was gray, but when it flipped itself over, the color was startlingly different, dark and glossy with bright yellow spots.

A lizard? asked Foster. What kind?

Ben said he had no idea. Together they watched it try to climb out of its smooth-sided prison.

It wants to escape, Foster said. You going to let it go?

Maybe. Ben hadnt thought that far. First he had to find out what it was and what it did for a living. It might be rare. It might be worth a lot.