Anthony walked past the park bench and saw something green in the grass. He picked it up. It was a shell. It hummed.
Anthony squeezed the shell. WHOOSH! His arms got stubby. His legs grew short. He was wearing a little mask.
A man in a striped shirt darted toward the picnic table. Anthony dropped behind a bush. The man grabbed the basket. 'Halt!' Anthony yelled — and tripped into a pile of leaves.
Anthony peeked through the leaves. The thief was at the bike rack, stuffing snacks into his backpack. Anthony crawled forward, then scuttled sideways like a turtle.
He bumped into a trash can lid. CLANG. The thief turned around. Anthony threw a handful of acorns.
The acorns bounced everywhere. Ping, ping, ping. The thief slipped on a rolling acorn and dropped the backpack. Anthony waddled over.
Anthony opened the backpack and pulled out a chocolate-chip cookie. He broke it in half and offered one piece to the thief.
The thief sniffled. 'I was just really hungry,' he mumbled. Anthony didn't say anything. He just sat there.
Anthony carried the backpack back to the picnic table and set it down neatly. The cookies were safe. He held the green shell.
Anthony held the green shell. WHOOSH — he was Anthony again, standing by the park bench.
A little girl ran up holding out the other half of the cookie. 'Thank you, Anthony,' she said.
He smiled and took a bite. The park was loud and busy, but Anthony felt like a hero.