February 2020 - Issue 2

Welcome to the second issue of Inklings magazine!

I hope you enjoy reading this second issue of Inklings and seeing these young writers’ talents.  I know I did! In this issue, there are short stories, there’s a song, and even a comic!  A lot of the writers who have written something for this issue are amazing at description.  I felt like I was right there in some of these stories, and I didn’t want to leave. Don’t forget that if you are 18 years old or younger, you can write something for the next issue!  Our submission guidelines are here.  Thank you!

• Elizabeth Hilgart,  editor

The Treasure Box

By Ruth Nicolaus, age 8.

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there was a box – a treasure box – with a dragon guarding it.  There was treasure in it, like swords, diamonds, and even some armor. And a map for some treasure. There were keys hidden away in a cave.  Bats were roaming around. Skulls were laying on the ground. And rats, lizards, and even moths were fluttering and scurrying all over the place.  Also, genies, ghosts, and wizards lived in the cave. Spiders were making webs in the corners of the cave. Trolls, beetles, and owls loved the place.  There was a big lake around it, so everyone could go swimming once in a while. The place was lit by candlelight. In the far right corner, there was gold spilling out of the bag.  Diamonds, crowns, and a book surrounded it.

To be continued…

Moonlight

By Kaitlin C., age 11.

We’re running through the town,

they can’t hold us down.

Singing at the top of our lungs!

Moon’s cutting through the dark,

I’m cutting through the park,

the moon’s on my heels,

 now I know how it feels,

to lose my mind to the moonlight!

The Ninja’s Suits

By Breanna S., age 11.

Everyone had just arrived at the ninja training camp. Billy's face was struck with fear. He didn't want to fight. The reason the instructor chose Billy was because he was so quick on his feet.

“Now that you four are here, head on down to the village field. You will have a mock fight there so I can see what your skill levels are, and where I need to begin our training,” the instructor announced. So Billy walked to the field with the other ninjas. As he did, he noticed that the field smelled of a faint, unfamiliar scent. What was the odd plant growing in this farmer's field? He looked into the distance and saw that some colorful suits were lying there for them.

Then the instructor said, “If your name is Mitchel, you get to wear the red suit.” A young boy Billy's age who was wearing a tank-top casually walked over to the red suit and picked it up. Then the instructor spoke again.

“If your name is Elizabeth, you get the pink suit.” A black-haired girl chewing bubble gum nonchalantly grabbed the pink suit. “If your name is Billy, you get the blue suit.” Billy bent down and saw the brand-new suit lying there. Even though he didn't want to be a ninja, the suit was too irresistible. The vibrant color and brilliant craftsmanship drew him to it, and he couldn't help but pick it up.

“And finally, if your name is Natalie, you get the green suit.” A brown haired girl with glasses, floated over to her suit, picked it up, and hugged it. Billy could tell she was overly excited.

“Oh, I can't believe we get to be ninjas!” Natalie said smelling the freshness of her suit. “Can you guys believe it?”

“Sure I can. There's a bright, pink, ninja suit lying right in front of me,” Elizabeth said. Then she looked at Billy. “The name's Lizzy, and for the record, there's a bug on your shoulder.”

“What, where? Oh please don't hurt me little bug!” Billy shouted, jumping up and down, until he realized there was no bug. Then the guy named Mitchel laughed,

“Ha! You got scared by a girl! Ya know you're never gonna' be a good ninja if you get scared that easily.”

“Your name's Mitchel, right?” Billy asked the guy who laughed at him.

“Yup.” Mitchel said. Just then the bell rang and the four trainees sprang up into position. It was time for the mock battle.

Gone!

The four teens had finally finished training for the day and had exhaustively flopped onto their beds. They were to get to sleep right away for another early day of training tomorrow, but sleep didn't come for Billy. He tossed and turned all night and woke up around midnight. Oh how he missed his parent and his sisters, Cora and Clara. They were twins, and they were both younger than him. Billy then got out of bed and decided to go outside for a walk. He was hoping the fresh air would comfort him. His worry got the best of him again, and he left the door open just in case he were to get locked out.

The whipping wind was very cold, and Billy was terrified, but that didn't make him go back to bed. Instead, Billy went over to the cafeteria building where he found the cook couldn't sleep either. She had a warm and inviting way, which reminded Billy of his mother. He went over to her, and the two of them talked and had some home-made, chocolate chip cookies. The cookies smelled as if you walked into a bakery filled with fresh baked cinnamon buns and cakes galore. After a long talk, Billy and the cook felt tired, so they both said good bye, and Billy went back to his cabin. He was so tired he fell asleep before his bright, red-orange hair touched his pillow, and he was snoring the rest of the night away.

“Billy! Wake up! You're not gonna' believe this,” Mitchel said while shaking Billy awake.

“What? Can't this wait 'till later. I'm trying to sleep,” Billy said, covering his head with a pillow.

“Relax, I got it,” Elizabeth said, smiling, “Oh no, there's a bug crawling on your blanket!”

“Ahh! Get it off! Get it off!” Billy screamed, jumping out of bed. He looked and saw Mitchel laughing his head off.

“Guys! We have a situation here!” Natalie said urgently.

“What's up?” Billy asked noticing that Natalie looked very serious.

“My suit! It's...it's gone!” She panicked. “I had it neatly folded and placed with 180 degree angle and set on...”

“Whoa whoa!” Billy said interrupting Natalie's sentence, “Slow down. I'm sure it's around here somewhere.” They all started looking under beds, in drawers, anywhere they could think of. The suit was nowhere to be found.

Rose

“Oh we'll never find it!” Natalie said between sobs. “My whole ninja career will be over! Even though it barely started!” Right then the speaker turned on.

“All trainee ninjas, report to the cafeteria. It's time for breakfast.” The four teens with growling stomachs, got up and headed for the cafeteria. When they got there and saw the janitor with a girl. Billy looked over and saw Mitchel staring at the girl.

“Who's that over there?” Mitchel said pointing at the girl. Natalie knew right away who it was.

“That's just Joe the janitor with his daughter Rose. Hey, Rose!” Natalie said. The girl saw the four teens and walked over to the group.

Shyly blushing, she said, “Hi there. I'm Rose. My dad is the janitor of this training camp. I get to stay here with my dad every summer break. What's your name?”

Natalie knew Rose was nice right away, “I'm Natalie, this is Elizabeth, that's Billy and...”

“My name's Mitchel, but you can call me Mitch,” Mitchel blurted out. “Want to join us for breakfast? We're having Waffles and muffins.”

“I would love to, but I already ate and I promised I would help my dad repaint the training arena. Maybe I can join you another day”

“Rose! Let's go start painting,” Joe the Janitor said. Then he turned and saw that the four teens were looking at him. “What are you lookin' at? Scram! Go eat your breakfast.” He and Rose left without another word. Rose looked back and made her lips shape the word “sorry”. Billy, Elizabeth, and Natalie got up and brought their trays to the garbage.

“Mitch, you coming?” Billy asked, seeing him watch Rose walk away. Elizabeth's face showed that she was planning a prank.

“Hey, is that a picture of Rose, taped to the fridge'?” Mitchel got up immediately and looked toward the refrigerator. Then Elizabeth laughed out loud. Mitchel, with a face as red as a beet, thought of a quick excuse.

“The reason why I looked at the fridge' is because...I needed more milk.” He opened the refrigerator and grabbed a carton of milk. He quickly chugged it down and burped when he was done.

“Gross!” Billy said. He always thought burping was disgusting. “Now let's get to the field and practice.

“What will we practice on, Genius?” Elizabeth said sarcastically.

“On each other. Lizzy vs Natalie and me vs Mitch. Seems fair, doesn't it?” Billy answered.

“You're goin' down bro!” Mitch said, cracking his knuckles “D-o-w-n Down!”

Gone Again!

It was another sleepless night for Billy so he went for another walk. He left the door open again, just to be safe, and ended up at the cafeteria once again. He and the cook had another long talk. He left the cafeteria at around two o' clock AM and fell sound asleep when he got back in bed. Billy woke up that morning again by Mitchel shaking him.

“Billy! Now MY suit is gone! I threw it on the floor last night and now it's not there!” Mitchel exclaimed. Billy got out of bed and found that something was under it.

“What's under my bed! Oh, what if it's a monster!” Billy was terrified. “I read in horror books that when someone checked under their beds, a monster would jump out and eat the victim.” Then he heard a muffled noise coming from under the bed.

“It's just me, Natalie. I'm looking for mine and Mitchel's suits. My suit is still lost too, you know.” Natalie came out from under the bed. Her hair was a mess and she was starting to think. “Why don't we go look at the two remaining suits to see if there are any clues,” she suggested. So the four went over to the closet where Elizabeth and Billy's suits were, and they observed it. As soon as Natalie opened the closet, she started to sneeze non-stop.

“What's wrong, Natalie?” Billy asked. “Do you have a cold?”

“No, I...achoo...I'm allergic to cats...achoo!” Natalie said between sneezes.

“If you're allergic to cats, why are you sneezing now? I mean, none of us own a cat, and we haven't been around cats lately,” Elizabeth asked.

“I...achoo...I don't know. Will someone get me...achoo...some tissues.” Natalie went over to her bed and sat down. Billy went over to his bed-side table, opened a drawer, and grabbed a tissue box. Then he went over and sat by Natalie. He handed her the box, and Elizabeth came over and sat by her too. They all took a moment to think while Mitchel paced back and forth throughout the room. After a while, Mitchel thought of an idea.

“Guys! Guys! What if Joe the janitor is taking our suits! You all have noticed the way he scowls every time he sees us.”

“That could be it!” Natalie exclaimed. “But how are we going to find out if your hypothesis is right?”

“What's a hypothesis?” Billy asked

“A hypothesis is an educated guess to see if you were right or wrong about something,” Natalie said. “Well, let's get thinking again.”

A Close One

They thought and thought, and all of a sudden, Mitchel burst out with an idea.

“What if we spied on Joe! We could find out if he's the culprit, and all of our ninja training would be finally put to use.”

“Hey Genius, we've been training for two stinkin' days, and you made it sound like we've been training for weeks. Quit exaggerating,” Elizabeth said, and blew a bubble with her gum.

“Okay, okay,” Mitch said. “I may have exaggerated our training a tiny bit, but just think, we would get to go on a real mission. We get to do the real thing! So who's with me?” he shouted, standing up.

“I guess,” Billy said and stood up too.

“I am! And for the record, I love your enthusiasm!” Natalie said, smiling. Then she realized she was supposed to stand up so she did. Now everyone was staring at Elizabeth.

“I guess I'm in too,” she said and stood up. “Great, now we're all standing up. Hooray,” So the four ninjas kept on training until it was dark. Then they all sneaked out the window.

“We could've used the door,” Elizabeth said, rolling her eyes.

“It wouldn't be as ninja-y to use the door.” Mitchel said.

“Is that even a word?” Billy asked, thinking it through. Then he shook his head and followed the others. They slowly crept up to the cafeteria

where they heard someone whistling. They peeked into a window and saw Joe the janitor mopping the floor. When he finished, he grabbed a broom and started swinging it around as if it were a staff. He knew all of the moves that the four trainee ninjas were learning! He was doing every move perfect until he accidentally dropped the broom. So he grabbed and tried the move again. His fingers didn't seem to keep up with the rest of his body so when he tried to do the finger transition part. He ended up dropping the staff again. He frowned, and tried again and again. He did this for five minutes straight, but he could never conquer it.

“Poor guy,” Natalie whispered

“Shh!” the others said in unison.

“What was that?” Joe said looking around. He stormed outside to see if anyone was watching him. “Who's out there?” he demanded. The four ducked under a bush just in time. For a while everyone froze. It was if they were turned into stone.

“Let's get back to the cabin,” Billy whispered. He started to creep backwards when he stumbled on a rock.

“Hey!” Joe shouted and started running over to the bush where the four were hiding. He brushed aside the leaves on the bush and when he did, Natalie took a stick and whacked him on the head. Joe hobbled back, vigorously rubbing his head.

“Run!” Mitchel shouted, and the four scrambled up the hill. They were going to take the path, but if they did, Joe would be able to see them.

“Into the woods!” Billy shouted and turned abruptly into the forest. The others followed as quick as they could. They just managed to get to the cabin and jump through the window when Joe came panting up the hill. He was worn out and angry. Billy then tiptoed quietly to his bed. Then he motioned for the others to do the same. As soon as they got in bed, Joe slammed the door open. Mitchel pretended to snore obnoxiously. It almost made Billy laugh, but he held it in. The snoring must have worked because Joe sighed and left. As soon as he was out of sight, they all started to laugh quietly. Their hearts were beating extremely fast, and they were all worn out, but they had done it. Mitchel was about to fall asleep when he remembered Joe's practicing. How could he be that good if he's only a janitor?

Joe's secret

That morning they woke up to someone knocking on their door. Billy got up and opened the door. It was Rose!

“Hi there. Your name is Billy, right?” she asked “My dad said I can have the day off so I was wondering if I could hang out with you guys.”

“Is that Rose?” Mitchel asked, jumping up from his bed and racing to the door.

“Looks like someone's in love,” Elizabeth told Natalie while she was pointing to Mitchel

“She is here! I mean, sure you can hang out with us. In fact, I was, um, wondering if you and I could go for an, um, sort of an, activity together. Um, if you want to.”

Rose blushed and said, “Sure, I'd love to.” Mitchel grabbed his clothes and darted to the bathroom to change. Then he and Rose started to walk on the path that led through the woods and around the training camp.

“So, I was wondering, what is your favorite color?” Mitchel asked

“I've always loved the color yellow. I also love the color red. Wait, aren't you training to be the red ninja?” She asked looking at him

“Ya, um, I guess so,” Mitch said. Then he recalled when Joe was doing the ninja tricks. “So, I ugh, I noticed that your dad sort of, looked angry when he saw us training. Is there a reason for that?”

“Well, I'm not supposed to talk about it, but, I think I can trust you.” Rose said looking down at her feet. She looked up again and said, “My dad was once chosen to be the Blue ninja. He was very skilled and was knowledgeable about every ninja martial arts style.”

“What happened?” Mitchel asked, not knowing if he should have.

“When it was time for his mock battle, the instructor noticed that my dad's fingers weren't keeping up to the rest of his body every time he did a move. So he kept on accidentally dropping the weapon over and over again. He found out later that he has a medical condition that affects his joints called Rheumatoid arthritis.” Rose sighed and then went on. “The instructor said that because of his slow fingers, my dad could never qualify to be a real ninja. Feeling bad for him and instead of sending him away, the instructor said that my dad could stay and be the janitor for however long he wanted to.”

“I'm so sorry. I just thought, oh, never mind,” Mitchel said ignoring the thought that Joe stole the suits.

“You just thought what?” Rose asked. Mitchel could see the curiosity in her eyes.

“Well, our ninja suits have been disappearing overnight and, um, we, sort of thought that your dad was, I don't know, maybe, stealing them.”

“Well I know for a fact that he isn't stealing your guys' suits. But, I also know for a fact that I want to help you solve this strange mystery! Come on! We gotta' go tell the others that I want to help!” Rose said running back the way they came.

“Oh, now? Okay!” Mitchel said, racing after Rose.

The Trap

When the two got back, they were panting like dogs. They knocked on the door and Billy opened it.

“Back so early?” he asked. He wondered why they came back so early.

“We need to talk, inside.” Mitchel said, walking in, and sitting down next to Elizabeth. Then he continued. “I asked Rose about, well, you know, and she said that Joe was once chosen to be the blue ninja! The instructor said he couldn't become a ninja because his fingers didn't keep up with the rest of the body while he was doing the moves. He has a medical condition So the instructor made Joe a janitor instead of a ninja.” Everyone was silent. “Also, I forgot to mention that Rose says Joe didn't steal it. And also, she wants to help us catch the thief.”

“That would be great!” Billy said. “But how do we?”

“Well, have you ever thought about setting up a trap?” Rose asked, looking at the others.

“I never thought about that!” Natalie exclaimed, jumping up onto her feet.

“How many suits do you have left?” Rose asked.

“Two,” Billy said, getting up to grab them from the closet. He came back with them, one in each hand. Billy brought the remaining suits over to the group. Everyone stared at the suits and thought. Soon Natalie came up with a plan.

“What if we put a suit on the floor at night time, and then, one of us watches it until the thief comes in and tries to take it. We'd leave the door open and lock the windows so that the thief HAS to come in through the door.”

“Not bad,” Billy said. “But who has to be the watch guard?” Then everyone looked and pointed at Billy. Since he couldn't sleep much anyways, he was the best option“Oh, fine” he said, grabbing his pillow of his bed. He put it down at his feet and sat on it. “There, happy?” he asked

“You don't have to watch yet. We still have to train. Besides, we just woke up about...ten minutes ago.” Elizabeth said. So the Five left the cabin and went to the arena. Rose practiced with the others, but she wasn't as good as them. They had trained more than she had, so she tried to simplify the moves as best as she could. After a long time, they finally finished training for the day. So they headed back to the cabin, and Rose went to the Janitor's cabin. They all went to sleep except Billy. It was his job to stay up all night and watch the suit. But, because of two sleepless nights already, Billy too, fell asleep.

“Huh...did we catch the thief?” Billy said as he woke up. He opened his eyes and saw that Elizabeth, Mitchel, Natalie, and even Rose, were staring at him with their arms crossed.

“Billy!” Natalie said, picking him up by the collar of his shirt. “YOU FELL ASLEEP!” she screamed in his face “I guess this time we ALL have to be on watch duty.” The day flew by and once again, and the sun had set and everyone struggled to stay awake and stay quiet. Billy could hear the others breathing, it was that quiet. Later that night, something sneaked in through the door, grabbed the suit and was about to head out when Rose saw it and jumped up.

“Guys! Guys! Our suits!” she shouted and burst outside after the thief. It looked as if the suit was moving by itself. As soon as the others heard Rose shout, they jumped up as well and started chasing the suit. They chased it all around the camp! When they went around the janitor's cabin, Joe woke up and darted after the five, not knowing that one of them was his daughter.

“Hey!” Joe shouted as he chased them. Then, they chased the suit around the cafeteria where the cook saw them. She stepped outside right in front of Joe, and the two of them collided. The cook was carrying a big pot of wash water, and when they collided, she spilled the boiling water all over herself. She got so mad that she started to chase Joe, who was chasing the five teens, who were chasing the suit! Finally the cook caught up to Joe and tackled him to the ground. It was quite a sight. She gave him a good scolding and angrily stormed back to the cafeteria. Joe thought he heard steam come out of her ears. He got up and looked around. The five teens were nowhere to be seen. So he too, stormed back to his cabin and slammed his door behind him. Meanwhile, the teens cornered the suit. Mitchel grabbed the suit, only to find that it was a cat! Everyone was dumbfounded. Immediately Natalie started to sneeze

“Achoo...a cat?” she said, falling over in disbelief. “Oh, now I understand...Achoo...I was sneezing before because...Achoo...there was cat hair on the suits!”

“Why does this cat want our suits?” Billy asked “Let's try to figure this out. Where have we been lately?”

“I know!” Elizabeth said “We've been at the field a lot. Let's go, but, maybe can we bring the cat?” Elizabeth loved cats so she picked up the cat and walked with the others to the field. Instantly the cat went crazy and started rolling around in the crops.

“Wait!” Billy said, breaking of a piece off the plant and smelling it. “What if these crops are catnip!” Then everyone understood. The cat wanted their suits because they were covered in catnip!

“Well how did it get in all those other nights?” Mitchel asked

“Well, I've been going out for midnight strolls the past few nights and I may have left the door open a crack.” Billy said nervously laughing

“Um...Achoo...can we go back to...achoo...the cabin?” Natalie said, while she scratched her nose. The big mystery was solved. The cat was given to an animal rescue center. Joe and Rose had a good talk and he never again scowled or grumbled at the ninjas and he sometimes even taught them things, and Rose fell in love with training and seemed to have inherited some of her dad's ninja skills and eventually, she became the yellow ninja!

The End

is Only the Beginning...

Kittens Crack Up!

By Hallie and Audrey H.