Huey's fins opened and closed.
They shone all different colors.
But he was quiet.
"What's the matter, Huey?" asked Jane.
"I've never said anything before," he said, "but are you sure this is what you want?"
Huey looked really worried.
"I don't like being a child," Jane said.
"People always tell you what to do.
But grown-ups can do whatever they want."
Huey shook his head.
"No, Jane. Being grown-up is harder than you think.
But this is your wish."
His fins turned dark.
Then the children felt a tickling in their arms and legs.
"I'm growing!" Bobby shouted.
His chubby stomach disappeared as he continued to grow tall.
"Look at me!" shouted Jane.
Her hair turned darker as she also grew taller.
Panther's glasses disappeared and her face grew longer.
Not only did Cy grow taller but he also got bigger.
His stomach stuck out in front of him.
"Cy's fat!" teased Bobby.
"Shut up, Bobby," Cy yelled back.
Finally the tickling feeling stopped.
They had stopped growing.
Now the children were no longer children.
"You are all grown-up," Huey said sadly.
They looked at each other.
Cy and Bobby were wearing suits.
"This tie is choking me," complained Bobby.
Panther and Jane were wearing skirts and high heels.
They carried purses.
"I'm a woman!" Jane said happily.
"Well, my work is done.
So if you'd please . . ." Huey pointed to the well.
Grown-up Cy lowered the bucket more quickly than ever.
"Wow! That was fast," he said.
"That's because you're bigger," Jane said.
"We've all changed," Panther remarked.
But it was different from the first wish.
When they had been beautiful, they had looked like strangers to one another.
"I can recognize you," continued Panther.
"But you look . . ."
"What, Panther?" asked Jane.
"You look old," Panther said.
"What's done is done.
Let's go into town," said Cy.
The adult Barths walked through the woods.
It was not a comfortable journey for any of them.
"This tie is too tight!"
Bobby continued to complain.
"I can't walk in these heels," cried Panther.
"This suit jacket is making me hot," said Cy.
"I keep dropping my purse," said Jane.
They were relieved to finally get to town.
Other adults looked at them as they passed.
"Good morning," Cy called out in a grown-up voice.
"Good morning," people answered back.
"Wow! They think we're one of them!" he whispered to his siblings.
"I feel so important," Bobby said, standing up taller.
"What do you want to do?" asked Panther.
"I know," said Jane, her eyes shining brightly.
"Let's get coffee!"
The children always wondered what coffee tasted like.
Their parents and Aunt Martha drank it every morning.
"Coffee is for grown-ups," Mom had always said.
"Wait till you're older," Dad used to say.
The grown-up Barths found a small coffee shop.
They walked up to the counter and ordered four large coffees.
"Hey, Cy, can I have some cheesecake?" asked Bobby.
"You know what Mom said about sweets," Cy replied.
The man behind the counter looked at them strangely.
"Will there be anything else?" he asked.
"Uh, no, that's all," Cy said in his new, deep voice.
The children took the coffee to a table near the window.
As soon as they sat down, Jane took off her heels.
"How can anyone walk in those?" she complained, rubbing her feet.
"Yuck!" Panther spit out the coffee she drank.
"This is disgusting!
How can Mom and Dad like this?"
The other children tried it, too.
"It tastes awful," agreed Cy.
The grown-up Barths wondered why adults drank that bitter black stuff.