Page 13 - Wiggly the Worm

house. There were aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and friends. A grill
was set up on the patio, and delicious smells wafted from platters of burgers
on picnic tables in the yard.

It was the perfect sort of day for Munchy to get her fill of people blood. Who
would have thought that giving a person one tiny bite could result in such a
delightful snack? Munchy was aware that most people thought she was a pest.
They tried to swat her whenever she got near, but Munchy was fast and an
expert at dodging humans’ flailing fingers.

I don’t want to hurt anyone, Munchy thought. But a mosquito bite just takes
a second, and then I fly off to find the next person.

Satisfied at last, Munchy buzzed back to the garden where she lived with her
best friends Wiggly Worm, Rattles Snake, and Snarky Snail.

“I’m full!” she announced. “I don’t think I’ll eat for a week!”

“There’s some kind of celebration going on over there,” remarked Wiggly, who
was playing in the dirt.

“I know!” smiled Munchy. “The family has so many guests over—so many
guests with delicious blood.”

Snarky made a face. “I think it’s the Fourth of July or something—but, Munchy,
do you really have to do that to people? Mosquito bites make them awfully
uncomfortable.”

“Only for a second,” Munchy replied. “It’s just an itty-bitty sting.”

“No, it isn’t,” protested Snarky, who ventured into the backyard more than
any of his friends. “Mosquito bites are itchy and uncomfortable for a long
time—sometimes several days. I’ve seen those two little kids scratching and
complaining about bites you’ve given them.”

“I think that’s true,” agreed Rattles, who also went into the yard more often,
now that the humans knew he was a friendly rattlesnake.

“Oh, no,” murmured Munchy. Mosquito bites hadn’t seemed like a big deal be-
fore—but they did now. She didn’t want to be responsible for making people
feel itchy all the time!

With a sigh, Munchy said, “I guess I’ve got to quit. From now on, I’ll stick to
sugar-water shakes at the Garden Town soda fountain—but it isn’t going to be
easy!”

With some help from her friends, Munchy was able to stop biting people once
and for all. And, when the other mosquitoes that lived in the garden heard
about her new lifestyle, they decided to give it a shot, as well. In no time, the
backyard was practically a mosquito-safe zone!

15