Balloon Blow-Up by Franklin W. Dixon

1
Mall Madness
    C heck it out, you guys!” nine-year-old Frank Hardy said. “Soon we’re going to meet the Crawler in the flesh!”
    â€œ Green flesh!” Frank’s eight-year-old brother, Joe, said with a grin.
    It was Saturday morning. Frank and Joe were at the Bayport Mall. The boys’ friends Chet and Iola Morton were also there, along with about a hundred other kids.
    They weren’t at the mall to see the new electronic games or sneaker styles. They were there to meet the most awesome superhero, the Green Crawler!
    â€œDo you think the Crawler will do what he does in the movies?” Chet asked, digging into a bag of Cheesy Curls.
    â€œYou mean grow extra legs five times the normal size?” Iola asked. “And climb walls and ceilings faster than a spider?”
    â€œSure,” Frank said. “As long as Mo Mantis doesn’t try to stop him.”
    Chet let out a “Boo!” Mo Mantis was the Green Crawler’s biggest enemy. Mo was part human, part praying mantis, and his dream was to destroy the Green Crawler. Thanks to the Crawler, it was a dream that never came true.
    â€œRemember,” Iola said. “We’re not here just to see the Crawler. We’re here to find out who won the contest!”
    â€œHow could we forget?” Joe said. “We all drew a picture of the Green Crawler. And the kid with the best picture wins the big prize,” he went on. “A chance to march with the Green Crawler balloon in the Fall Fest parade.”
    The Fall Fest parade happened every October in Bayport. It had floats and the high school marching band, plus one supersize balloon.
    â€œI’ve always wanted to be one of those balloon handlers,” Chet said, and sighed. He crossed his cheesy fingers. “I hope I win.”
    â€œMe too,” Joe said. He pulled something from his back pocket. It looked like a green claw on a stick. “That’s why I brought this.”

    â€œWhat is it?” Iola asked, wrinkling her nose.
    â€œIt’s my Green Crawler snapping claw!” Joe said, squeezing the handle to make it open and close. “The Green Crawler is the only one who can use Mo Mantis’s own claw against him. It’s also my lucky charm!”
    â€œYou don’t need luck to win this contest, Joe,” Frank said. “Just the best drawing of the Green Crawler.”
    Joe pictured himself as a balloon handler. Neat! But then he had a scary thought . . .
    â€œWhat if the balloon picks me up and carries me away?” Joe asked. “I’m just a kid!”
    â€œThe other handlers will all be grown-ups,” Frank said with a chuckle. “That’s what it said in the rules.”
    â€œHopefully, big and strong grown-ups,” Chet said. “I heard the Green Crawler balloon is humongous!”
    They were about to move closer to the stage when a bunch of voices began shouting: “We want Nutty! We want Nutty back in the parade!”
    â€œWho are they?” Chet asked as some kids marched by holding signs. “And why are they wearing squirrel hats?”
    â€œIt’s the Nutty the Squirrel fan club,” Frank explained.
    â€œYou mean that cartoon squirrel?” Iola asked. “The Nutty the Squirrel balloon was in the parade two years in a row.”
    â€œThat’s why the fan club is here, I guess,” Frank decided. “They want the Nutty balloon back in the parade.”
    â€œThey can dream on,” Chet declared. “The Green Crawler wipes the floor with that Nutty the Squirrel!”
    â€œShh!” Iola warned. “They might hear you!”
    Too late. The fans stopped shouting. A boy wearing glasses and the biggest squirrel hat glared at Chet as he walked over.
    â€œHere comes Sammy Kernkraut,” Joe murmured. “He’s the president of the Nutty club.”
    â€œHow do you know?” Frank asked.
    â€œHe’s in my class,” Joe