The cars zoomed past the neat bushes. Doors slammed shut as the wind pushed us towards the wooden gates. Just another day at Roseinton Avenue. My name is Spring and I’m about to tell you the story of my neighborhood. It all started on a fine spring (get i

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First name, first letter of surname
Antonia.C
Age
10
The cars zoomed past the neat bushes. Doors slammed shut as the wind pushed us towards the wooden gates. Just another day at Roseinton Avenue. My name is Spring and I’m about to tell you the story of my neighborhood. It all started on a fine spring (get it?) morning. My pet dog ,Pop, bounced all over my body as I rose from my bed. My hair appeared as if a tornado had a dance party inside my brown locks. I changed into my favorite Sunday wear as I gazed upon the horizon. Birds chirping a melodious song, clouds floating in the clear blue sky, flowers blossoming across every garden.

My feet tapped on the concrete along the path as I made my way to my best friend's house, Winter. Noticing her roses and sunflowers beautifully planted across her lawn I carefully leaped over each and every one. As soon as I reached her door it flew right open revealing her face. Long black hair hung down her head as she offered me to come inside. Her room was perfectly organised as I sat down on one of her cushions. Just before I could comment on her new flowers a loud BOOM interrupted me.

“What was that?!” I questioned. “I’m not sure, Spring. But it sounded like it was coming from your house!” Winter guessed. “Can I borrow your binoculars?” I asked as she handed me sparkly pink binoculars. I examined my home as my mind was whirling with questions. Nothing was wrong with my house. The ordinary had stayed in the town Forestville. Mum ironing the clothes, Dad clicking the keys on his laptop, Pop chewing my slippers (bad dog!).

It was then I noticed the new neighbor. Smoke rose from its chimney as I was able to make out sparks sprouting out into the air! I couldn’t believe my eyes! Explaining my discoveries to Winter she responded, “Yes they are the newcomers to Roseinton Avenue. Although I did find that their child always hid his/her face.” This mystery seemed to get stranger and stranger. Deciding to have a closer look I dashed straight back in my house!
Racing into my home I peered over the fence as I discovered some relieving news. The smoke came from sausages and the sparks were the starting of a fire. It was just a normal backyard barbeque. Soon, Winter had caught up with me as she burst into my yard. I then discovered my new neighbor. Her short golden locks were hanging over her face, a bright purple dress shone in the sun. Guessing she’d decided to show her face, I asked my mum what her name was. Apparently, there was her mother (Mrs Packpun), her father (Mr Packpun) and her big sister (Rose Packpun). Which left her to be Daisy Packpun.

“How lovely would it be if she could be your friend, girls?” cries Mum. “I hope they don’t disturb my silent reading. I’m just about to finish the last book of Harry Potter!” Winter worried. “Did you see their naked cat? It's as pale as a ghost!” I shouted. “Oh, stop worrying. I’m sure she’s a wonderful child who’s very lonely.” Mum commented. I gathered all of my courage as I made my way over with Winter.

As soon as we knocked on the door, a lady with a long pink dress and silky beige hair appeared. We explained we wanted to welcome them and get to know what brings them to Roseinton Avenue in Forestville. “Where did you use to live before you moved?” Winter asked politely. I could tell she was trying hard not to scream at the naked cat. “We used to live in New York City. It was a lovely place.” Mrs Packpun replied. “Why’d you move if you were so happy?” I questioned. Winter gave me a hard kick in the leg (ouch!). Okay! I know, it's a bit of pressure when you’re being asked like that but I can’t help it! “Well, I got a new job here and so we had to move.” Mr Packpun answered.

I offered them a box of handmade cookies to make them feel better. I had to admit, they looked pretty sad. As I was heading out the door a row of bizarre flowers were planted on the front lawn. Strange petals hung crookedly along the paranormal stem. I decided to ask the other neighbors what they thought of the Packpun family. Ms Billings said she thought they were very caring to look after her garden. Mr Catal replied saying he thought they were quite an odd bunch but are the perfect people for a conversation on a bright morning. Most of them said positive comments. Realising there's nothing to worry about I headed back home. There is nothing to worry about, right?
The hours flew by as I climbed into my bed diving under my covers. BOOM! A blast exploded from my neighbors house. Peering through my bedroom window I discovered silence had reigned throughout the entire street. What was that?! Was it an explosion? A science experiment? I wondered in curiosity. A thought suddenly struck me like thunder. At school, we had a project to mix elements and record what we found out! Realising my silly mistake I drifted off to sleep, pillow closing into my head.

DING-A-LING! My alarm clock screamed in my ears as I jumped out of bed ready for a brand new day! Deciding to go over to Winter's house, I dashed down the street as I noticed a peculiar event. The Packpun family had gone out for their daily run (as usual) and had worn their sports clothes (as usual) and were running in a straight line in unison!? That was not normal like every other family who went out for morning runs. The pattern continued nonstop,left ,right ,left ,right ,left ,right. Not a single hair out of line followed by shining clothes glittering in the burning sun.

They were neater than Winter and she’s the neatest, most organised, cleanest person I had ever met in my whole 12 years. Realising they’re all just neat freaks, I skipped happily towards Winter's house. Suddenly, an arm reached out to grab me as it yanked me toward their room. “I FOUND SOMETHING TERRIFYING!!!! DURING THE NIGHT YOUR NEW NEIGHBORS NAKED CAT HAS FUR!” Winter panted. My eyes widened as my jaw fell to the ground. I’d had enough! Racing back home I climbed my tree next to the Packpuns families gate to plan out my actions.

Glancing over to their window I discovered the most horrifying sight. The father had turned into a ghost, mother into a witch and the two daughters into witch-ghosts. My heart skipped a beat, a lump had formed into my throat and my breathing became more intense. I had found out their secret at last.

“rmrmfhfhfjdkfdj…turn..skfdkfjdisjijeifjdif..every…djkfjdkj…one…skskfsjsl…into….skfjd..toad!” Mrs Packpun murmered. My body froze in fear as it turned as still as a statue. “Turn…djkfjdskakjd…them…skfjdkfjskajkj…into…kfsdjklfdj…ghosts!” Mr Packpun whispered. My hands shook, as sweat dripped down my face. “How about toad ghosts?!” the daughters suggested. It was clear that the Packpun family definitely had plans. Scrambling down the branch of my tree, I leapt into my house.

Suddenly, a horrible thought struck me like a bolt of lightning. Mum had informed me of a barbeque lunch with the Packpun family next Saturday! Dipping my face in a sink of water, I sat down on my silky sheets imagining the possible consequences. Gathering the last of my courage I began to plan a way to make sure nobody gets turned into ANYTHING! It was my job to save everyone in Forestville no matter what!
“Spring! Take a look at the newspaper!” Mum cried. I dashed over to find the Headline to say: The Daily Banana says a huge tsunami is coming! My heart drummed as sweat flooded my face, my entire body shaking like a leaf. As soon as Winter heard the news she turned as pale as a ghost at the same time stuffing a sandwich in her mouth. Breathing heavily, my brain was jammed to get any new ideas. That was when I realised that the only hope was the Packpun family.

A witch could do some sort of spell to protect us and I’m pretty sure that a ghost has some sort of death magic!? “Perhaps Mrs Packpun could do a spell that could stop the tsunami or protect Forestville from it damaging anything. And I’ve been reading about ghost magic lately. So Mr Packpun could somehow allow the water to freeze (since ghosts are so cold) or let the water dissolve (kinda like killing water).” Winter suggested wisely. I knew I could always count on Winter to get all sorts of good ideas.

“What about the daughters?” I asked
“Well one daughter must be more of a dad or mum.” she replied
“And?”
“So one could help Mr Packpun and the other could help Mrs Packpun. That should definitely work!”
“That's a really good idea Winter!”
“Thanks Spring.”

After we’d finished deciding our move we thought about how to persuade them to help us. Winter pointed out that the tsunami should be enough to get them on our side. Darting out the door we made our way to the Packpun family’s house. Alarmingly, we spotted a parade of splashes laying on the road! CRASH! A wave flew over roofs of houses as I thumped on the Packpun family’s door. Winter panting like a dog, stared at the terrifying sight. Everyone who lived in Roseinton Avenue had evacuated their homes onto the street. “I’m too young to die!” wailed Miss Petty, the lady who always offered choc chip cookies on Christmas Eve. “We’ll never survive out of this.” snorted Stacie who was 13 years old and the drama queen of the street. “We got this together!” Winter and I chanted. Suddenly Rose and Daisy burst through the door! “We know exactly what to do!” they cried.

A splash of relief swept over me as we explained everything to the Packpun family. Eventually, we decided that Mr Packpun, Rose and Winter would be sending the tsunami back into the ocean. Mrs Packpun, Daisy and I would protect the street if anything went wrong. Leaping into action, we split into our places. Daisy instructed me to hold tight onto her hand as our feet left the ground. Mrs Packpun began chanting a spell as Daisy and I followed. A flash of purple light fell over the entire town as I gazed upon our magnificent work. Meanwhile, Mr Packpun and Rose were busy thinking of the perfect way to send it back.


“How about we do momeli?” Winter advised. “Perfect!” Rose complimented. They formed a circle until Mr Packpun pushed towards the wave with a mighty…SPLASH! It dissolved into the sea. Everyone cheered as the tsunami had finally gone back to its origin. My fist punched the air as I thanked the Packpun family for helping them save Forestville. A month passed as our friendship grew closer together than ever before! “Hi Daisy! Any new spells lately?” I asked. Flashing me a smile she replied, “Yep! I learned how to turn water into wine, make a full moon appear and how to bake a cake!” Winter had started a climate change club with Rose and so far so good. I’d figured over the past days that anyone could be friends with anyone. And so we lived in harmony forever hand in hand. (Also I found out that that night I found out their secret, they were just deciding what to do for Daisy's next spell. And were thinking of turning a cat into a toad or a ghost. So they decided on a toad ghost instead.)