Free Jennifer Murdley's Toad (Magic Shop Books) by Bruce Coville Page B

suspiciously.
    "I have no idea," said Bufo. "I told you, I never kissed a human until that little blond bombshell got me so annoyed. It's just a thought."
    "Wouldn't Mr. Elives have mentioned it if that was true?" asked Jennifer.
    "Not necessarily. He might not know. And if he did, he might not tell. He's big on letting people work things out for themselves."
    "How do I know it won't just double-toad me?" asked Jennifer.
    "You don't!" said Bufo, his voice tinged with exasperation. "Look, it's not my life's ambition to kiss you. I'm just making an offer."
    Jennifer sighed. I may be the only kid on earth so ugly even a toad doesn't want to kiss me, she thought bitterly.
    "Well?" asked Bufo.
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    "I'm thinking!"
    "Don't blow a brain cell on my account," he snapped.
    "All right, all right! Let's try it."
    Gathering her courage, she hopped closer to Bufo. "Just a little one," she said nervously.
    "You're the boss," replied Bufo, pursing his lips.
    Jennifer leaned forward, and planted her lips against his.
    No thunder rumbled above them. No cloud of smoke formed from the air.
    Yet a strange sensation jolted through Jennifer's frame. To her astonishment, Bufo jumped backward--something she had never seen a toad do before.
    "Good grief," he said, "I had no idea that would happen!"
    "What?" cried Jennifer. "What is it?"
    But she didn't need Bufo to answer. Once she was calm enough to take stock of the situation, she could see for herself what had happened. It wasn't clear if she was more toadly than ever, but she was certainly more of a toad than ever. Exactly twice the toad she had been, in fact--which is to say that she seemed to have doubled in size.
    "Remarkable," said Bufo.
    " 'Remarkable'!" cried Jennifer. "Is that all you can say? You come up with this stupid 'Kiss me' idea, turn me into the biggest toad in the state, and the best you can come up with is 'remarkable'?"
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    "Astonishing," said Bufo. "Incredible, amazing, and slightly stupefying. Does that make you feel better?"
    "Don't be such a smart aleck," said Jennifer. "What am I going to do now?"
    "I'm sure you can get one of the others to change places with you for a while," said Bufo.
    "Probably," said Jennifer. "But when I turn back into a human, will I be my usual size, or will I be nine feet tall?"
    Bufo shrugged. "I told you, this is all new to me."
    Jennifer hopped to the edge of the dresser and stared into the darkness.
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    TEN
    Bang-o, Change-o!
    As the returning sun leached the darkness from the sky, Jennifer gazed through her window, thinking about everything that had happened so far.
    Soon she was going to have to wake someone and beg them to take her place as a toad. Her only choices at the moment were Ellen, Sharra, or Brandon.
    Though she had been horrified when Sharra had been turned into a toad, she had also found it slightly amusing. That was because she had had no idea what it felt like to lose your body and be twisted into a different shape. An ugly shape.
    Now she knew.
    She looked at the floor. Way down. What would happen if she jumped? Was she now immortal, like Bufo? She decided not to test the idea.
    She was getting ready to wake the sleepers when Brandon began to stretch and yawn. After a moment,
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    he stood and stared at the two girls still sleeping in her bed.
    "Jennifer?" he asked, sounding puzzled.
    "Over here, Brandon," she said softly. "On the dresser."
    Brandon crossed to the dresser. He stood for a moment, then blinked, shook his head, and cried, "Hey, how'd you do that?"
    Jennifer glanced at her clock. It was 5:52. She had less than twenty minutes before the change was permanent. Feeling guilty, even though she knew she could change him back, she said, "Take me outside and I'll show you."
    "Okay," said Brandon. He reached forward with both hands to pick her up. "Man, you're the fattest toad I ever saw," he said, once he had her in his grasp.
    "Just take me outside," snapped Jennifer. "And be quiet. We don't want