Macdonald Hall #3: Beware the Fish!

In the name of the law

"That Cathy!" muttered Bruno at the lunch table the following day. "I'd like to string her up by her ears!"

"It was just an accident, Bruno," argued Boots protectively. "She didn't mean it."

"It was also a flaw in my reasoning," admitted Elmer. "Because of the tremendous speed of the craft, I should have expanded the range of the controls." He sighed. "It was out of range in less than three seconds."

"Still," snapped Bruno, "that dippy girl-"

He was interrupted by a commotion at the entrance to the dining hall. The three boys ran to the centre of the disturbance. There, surrounded by a crowd of laughing students, marched a large pig. The animal was examining his new surroundings and glaring at the boys reproachfully as if they were trespassing on his territory.

"Hot gazoobies!" cried Bruno in delight. "We haven't had a guest for lunch since I don't know when!"

"This is our first pig," added Boots.

"Except for Wilbur!" shouted someone.

"Shut up!"

"Tell him to go away! There's not enough food here for us, let alone him!"

"Maybe he likes spinach!"

"Where did he come from?"

"I don't know. Hey! He's eating my lunch!"

"Just like Wilbur!"

"I said shut up!"

"Do you think we can keep him?"

"Keep whom?" asked a quiet voice from the doorway. A hush fell as Mr. Sturgeon entered the dining hall. His steely grey eyes surveyed the students and finally came to rest on the pig, whose head was now buried deep in one of the garbage cans. "May I ask how that creature came to be here?"

"He just arrived, sir," offered Bruno.

"I see," said the Headmaster. "By any chance, did anyone here assist his arrival?"

Nobody answered.

The silence was interrupted by the grinding of a truck motor outside. Mr. Sturgeon glanced outdoors to see a truckload of pigs pull up in front of the flagpole. "You will all remain here," he ordered, "and restrain the movements of that animal. I believe we shall be rid of him in a moment." He went out and motioned to the farmer to drive his truck up to the dining hall.

"Afternoon," said the farmer. "You folks got any of my pigs here?"

Mr. Sturgeon smiled. "We do indeed."

"Damndest thing I ever saw," said the farmer, getting out of his truck. "Woke up this morning and found a car sitting in my pigpen. Big hole in the fence and all the pigs gone. Later some young fellow comes down with a tow-truck. They haul the car out of the pen and this guy gives me some money for the damages. Claims he was forced off the road by a flying bomb with red and green lights. Did you ever hear a story like that?"

Mr. Sturgeon choked. "A flying bomb with red and green lights," he repeated oddly. "There—seems to be a lot of that going around."

"First I heard of it," remarked the farmer. "Hope my pig didn't do any damage."

"No, indeed," replied Mr. Sturgeon. "He's just in here, and you're quite welcome to him."

With the help of the boys of Macdonald Hall, the farmer loaded his pig onto the truck with the others and drove off.

Mr. Sturgeon stood watching, scratching his head in utter confusion.

* * *

Featherstone sat on his bed turning the UFO over and over in his hands and observing it through a large magnifying glass. There was no doubt that it was some kind of device used by the notorious Fish, for written on the body of it in bold letters were the words M.H. Flying Fish.