The Great Scavenger Hunt by Annie Bryant

mean. Not like Chewie over there.”
    She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, “Hey, Chew! It’s a surfboard, not a diving board, buddy.”
    â€œHis name’s Chewie?” asked Avery as she tried to control her excitement. “Do I want to borrow a board?…Oh, yeah!” She started digging her foot in the sand to keep from jumping in the air.
    â€œWell, Chewie’s real name is Aaron Feldman but we call him Chewbacca ’cause he looks like a big Wookiee.”
    As Chewie bobbed up from the water, Avery almost burst out laughing. He had the biggest, craziest fuzzball hair Avery had ever seen…even worse than Henry Yurt’s. He really did look like a Wookiee! “Oh, I get it. And what’s your real name?” she asked.
    September gave her a weird look and replied, “September.”
    Chewie, the Wookiee, ran in, covered in sand and seaweed, clutching his board. “That was mad harsh, dude.” He held up his hand and the two slapped a high five.
    â€œHey, Wooks! What’s up, fool?” September greeted him. “This is my new pal Avery. She’s gonna be a triple threat.”
    â€œWhoa, that’s bad!”
    â€œTotally,” Avery agreed.
    â€œDon’t you just love surfer lingo?” exclaimed September. “I mean, it’s so much fun. ‘Bad’ means ‘good,’” she continued. “‘Sick’ means ‘right on.’”
    â€œâ€˜Gnarly’ means ‘awesome,’” the Wookiee piped up.
    â€œThe important question is, will you be able to handlethis puppy?” She grabbed the board out of Chewie’s hands and tossed it to Avery.
    â€œIs it okay?” Avery glanced at the hairy kid.
    Chewie shrugged. “Yeah, man. Go for it.”
    Avery grabbed the board but it was immediately apparent to everyone that it was way too big for her. Her heart sank. The waves were calling.
    â€œOh.” September made a sad face. Then suddenly she snapped her fingers. “Wook man, go get Snow Bunny’s board and wet suit. The Bunny had to go back to work and she’s not too much bigger than this munchkin here.”
    â€œDude, you shred brilliance!” With that, the boy with the giant fuzzball took off and ran toward the snack bar.
    September turned out to be as awesome a teacher as she was a surfer. Before they even went in the water, she started giving Avery some helpful tips on catching the waves properly. Avery was a little annoyed with September’s “short joke,” but she hung on to the aloha girl’s wave wisdom. Avery could surf, but she wasn’t an expert just yet.
    â€œThe currents can be weird off this beach,” September explained. “You have to catch the wave perfectly or you’ll miss it.’”
    By the time the Wookiee returned with the board and the wet suit, Avery was practically drooling. The surf was definitely up and the cresting waves were calling her— Avery, Avery . When she finished suiting up, she and September raced down to the water with their boards.
    â€œNauset Beach is famous for its freezing water!”September shouted as she dove into the waves. “Brace yourself!”
    Avery had never surfed on this side of the Cape before. “Yikes!” she yelped as she jumped in. September wasn’t kidding about the water—it was like swimming at the North Pole! Her toes felt like they had turned into ice cubes, while her skin that wasn’t in the wet suit had morphed into major porcupine mode. But Avery didn’t care. In fact, the cold was downright refreshing after her long, hot bike ride.
    She and September swam out and treaded water as they waited for the perfect wave. September gave a thumbs-up to the lifeguard who paddled past her. “Hey, Nicky, go save a seal, will you!” she teased. Avery liked this September girl!
    â€œA huge part of this sport is being a great watcher. You