Free Lights Out! by Laura Dower

collected items.
    “Maybe we should split up to find the fungi,” Fiona said. “And don’t even think of making another joke—please!”
    “I think we should stay together. It’s getting near the end,” Madison said.
    Aimee and Lindsay were walking ahead, half crouched over. They found a whole bed of white mushroom caps and promptly picked a few.
    “So now all we need besides that signature is something smelly,” Fiona said.
    The girls stood in a circle with blank looks on their faces.
    “Smelly…” Lindsay said. “Like dog poop?”
    “GROSS!” Aimee cried. She thumped Lindsay on the shoulder. “That is so disgusting.”
    Lindsay giggled. “Sorry.”
    “It has to be a bad smell. We already picked some lilac for the good smell,” Madison said.
    “What’s bad smelly?” Lindsay asked.
    Aimee jumped into the air. “Look! Egg!”
    Fiona frowned. “Do you have to keep making stupid jokes—”
    “No, she’s right,” Lindsay said, pointing. “He’s coming this way with the rest of the guys.”
    Madison whirled around and found herself face-to-face with the approaching Hart, who was out of breath. “Hey, Finnster!” he gasped.
    “Hey,” Madison said.
    “We have an idea,” Egg yelled, throwing his arms up into the air. “We have an idea! We have an idea!”
    “An idea? That’s a new one,” Aimee said. “And what is it? You sound like a broken record.”
    “We’ve been working on this scavenger hunt just like the rest of you,” Egg explained.
    “But we can’t find a feather,” Drew admitted.
    “Or a moth,” Chet said. “How lame is that?”
    “Lame!” Fiona groaned. “Why should we care, Chet?”
    “ Because ,” Egg cried, stepping onto a stump as if he were assuming a preacher pose. “We have decided that if your group and our group pool our resources, we can win this stupid scavenger hunt. WIN!”
    “Even though Wayne Ennis claims he already won,” Dan said.
    “Okay! We can get second place, then,” Egg said. “Here’s the deal. We have something that no one else has: Mrs. Goode’s signature.”
    “Huh?” Lindsay said. “I heard that she was hiding or something. So you have to find her in order to get her to sign your—”
    “Nothing on the list says it has to be signed today ,” Egg said. “I happen to have her signature on an angry note she wrote home last week. I found it in my jacket.”
    “Isn’t that awesome?” Hart said, grinning.
    “You’re a genius, Egg,” Fiona said, mooning a little.
    “It is a good idea,” Madison said, considering it. “So you guys have all the other objects, including this note?”
    “Except for the feather and moth, like we said,” Dan said.
    “And something that smells bad,” Drew said. “Although Chet volunteered to donate his BO.”
    “Nice one!” Fiona said, pinching her nose.
    “Let’s do it!” Aimee shrieked. “I want to win. Let’s pool our resources and do it.”
    The friends exchanged objects, including the infamous signed note, and stuffed the complete “set” of scavenged items into Madison’s orange bag.
    “It’s almost time,” Drew said. “We should hand in the objects, and then we have to go back to the cabins for the talent show practice.”
    “Wait!” Aimee said. “We don’t have something that smells bad in this bag.”
    “Hart could just lay a big one in there,” Chet said, laughing. “Hart fart!”
    Everyone snickered except for Hart, who plowed his knuckled fist into Chefs left shoulder.
    “This is serious,” Madison said. “We need something that smells…. HEY! Aimee, what about your sleeping bag?”
    “What about it?” Aimee asked.
    “Didn’t you say it reeked?” Madison asked.
    “Yes,” Aimee said, nodding. “But isn’t that item a little big to bring? And it isn’t exactly something found in nature. And what am I supposed to sleep on in the meantime?”
    “Just go get it,” Madison said.
    Together the girls and boys walked toward Maple cabin. Aimee dashed