Aaron loved the quiet times at night when everyone else was asleep. He could think up stories without anyone interrupting his thoughts. Some nights, he imagined the shadowy branches were the dark forest of an ancient kingdom or the icicle jungle of a distant, frozen planet. Some nights, there were dragons and mythical beasts and magical flowers. Or robots. Or pirates . . .

  Tonight, though, Aaron thought about the plan. He turned it over and over in his mind. This way and that. That way and this. Upside down. Right side up. With each new angle, he tossed and turned and fluffed his pillow. He kicked off his blanket, pulled it up to his chin, then kicked it off again.

  Something was not right about their plan. But what? It had all the facts the city council needed to make the right decision: We need snakes. Snakes are important to the ecosystem. Snakes eat pests. Snakes are—

  Aaron yawned.

  Snakes are . . .

  Yaaaawwwwwwn.

  Snakes are . . . boring?

  Boring? No, he thought. Snakes aren’t boring . . . Are they?

  Aaron thought about Vern hiding in a sandwich in Zookeeper Fred’s office. Vern was tiny. He was green. He wasn’t a venomous cobra or a twenty-foot python hunting a panther in the jungle, but was he boring?

  Aaron stretched and readjusted his blanket again.

  Vern wasn’t boring, even if he ate grasshoppers instead of deadly jungle cats. After all, Vern was sneaky! He could have hidden anywhere in the zoo, and they would never have found him. Then he popped out of a coffee cup! That was so sneaky. And maybe—thought Aaron, closing his eyes and letting out a long, deep yawn—maybe Vern did it on purpose . . .

  Maybe . . . Aaron thought . . . Maybe, Vern wasn’t just a green snake. Maybe, he was a master of disguise! A spy! A detective! A reptile who traveled the world looking for adventure, solving mysteries, and eating grasshoppers! And bonbons.

  In that moment, Aaron could see it all! The Adventures of Detective Dangernoodle: International Snake of Mystery! From Paris to Peru . . . Singapore to Seattle. From the Great Wall of China to the tiny paper cup in Uncle Fred’s trash can, Vern was on the case.

  The Adventures of Detective Dangernoodle unfolded in Aaron’s imagination like a movie. With every scene, Aaron’s thoughts drifted further and further from the plan . . . and the city council . . . and the zoo . . . and . . . and . . .

  Aaron snuggled beneath his blanket as Oberon’s purr melted into the gentle rumble of a tiny Vespa carrying a sneaky green snake to his next adventure.

  The first of five panels shows the skyline of Paris with the caption, “Paris, the city of Light... and Danger.” The second panel shows a rooster and a hen having food in Cafe Frommage. The rooster is wearing a ring with a large stone. The third panel shows the rooster putting a piece of food in its mouth. The fourth panel shows the rooster and the hen having their food. The fifth panel shows the rooster looking at his hand in shock. He says, “My ring.”

  The first of three panels shows the hen holding the rooster and talking to the detective. The second panel shows the hen, rooster, and detective. The hen speaks, “My friend is too upset to speak.” The detective orders, “round up the usual suspects.” The second panel shows five suspects lined up in front of the Detective. He is asking, “Did you see who stole it?” The third panel shows the hen pointing to the snake wearing a magician’s costume. The hen says, “He did it.”

  In the first of three panels, the snake slips out of his magician costume holding a magnifying glass. He says, “Aha! Wrong! I am Detective Dangernoodle, international snake of mystery. You are the real thief.” The second panel shows the hen replying, “Moi?” in shock. The hen further adds, “How could I steal the ring? I don’t even have pockets.” The third panel shows Detective Dangernoodle looking at the hen’s face with the magnifying glass. He says, “You don’t need pockets! You’ve got something much better, Lady O! or should I say, Lady O’Possum jewel thief! Empty your pouch.”

  The first of eight panels shows Lady O’Possum fumbling through her pouch. The second panel shows the ring falling to the ground with a clink sound. The third panel shows Lady O’Possum running away from the scene saying, “You’ll never take me alive.” The fourth panel shows Lady O’Possum lying on her back. She says, “Ack.” The fifth panel shows Lady O’Possum’s tired face. The sixth panel shows Lady O’Possum thinking, “Are they gone yet?” The seventh panel shows Lady O’Possum opening one of her eyes, she says, “Oh Poohy!” The eighth panel shows Detective Dangernoodle cuffing Lady O’Possum. The hen is looking at the ring in his hand. Lady O’Possum yells, “Curse you, Detective Dangernoodle.” A sketch of a snake riding a Vespa holding a sign with the tagline, “Case closed,” is shown beside the eighth panel.

  CHAPTER

  12

  Aaron was up early the next morning. He was ready by the door with his snake posters before his siblings finished breakfast.

  “C’mon,” he said, while signing HURRY.

  At last, they headed toward City Hall. Sofia was waiting for them by the library. “Iggy got a spot near the door,” she said.

  “Why?” asked Aaron. “There’s lots of room on the landing.”

  “You’ll see,” said Sofia.

  They turned the corner and Aaron stopped short. Blue River Creek City Hall was a big, impressive building with giant glass doors that opened onto a big landing. Wide steps led from the landing to the plaza below. A chanting crowd filled all the steps and spilled onto the plaza. The landing was roped off, and a podium and city flag stood to the right of the glass doors.

  Aaron’s heart sank as they got closer. PSSST! signs were everywhere. The people carrying them chanted:

  Hiss! Boo! No snakes at the zoo!

  Hiss! Boo! No snakes at the zoo!

  Sofia gave Aaron a reassuring look. “C’mon,” she said.

  They squeezed through the crowd to the top of the steps, where Ada, Iggy, and Rosie stood with Sofia’s grandfather and a few familiar faces. They held their signs high and waved them at the doors of the City Hall in case anyone was watching from inside the building.

  Aaron looked at the signs of the other protesters. Only a few supported keeping the snakes in the zoo. Where had all these people come from? Who were they? Had everyone at the zoo brought a crowd of people?

  Aaron saw the woman with her triplets. The kids wore funny paper snake hats with googly eyes. They hissed and wiggled and giggled at each other.

  “I guess everybody had the same idea,” said Iggy.

  Aaron frowned. “We should have told everyone we know!”

  “It’s okay,” said Ada. “We don’t have as many people, but science is on our side.”

  Aaron looked down. He was standing on a glossy pamphlet. He picked it up.

  Aaron crammed the pamphlet into his pocket. He lifted his sign a little higher and joined his friends in a chant of their own.

  Save the snakes!

  Save the snakes!

  CHAPTER

  13

  After a few minutes, the doors opened and the mayor rolled out and waved to the chanting crowd. The city council gathered behind him. They were close enough to read the Questioneers’ signs. Aaron and his friends yelled even louder.

  Save the snakes!

  Save the snakes!

  Their chants were swallowed by the roar of the crowd.

  Hiss! Boo! No snakes at the zoo!

  Hiss! Boo! No snakes at—

  SQUEEEEEEEK!

  An ear-piercing squeal blasted from the speakers as the mayor turned on the microphone. The crowd went silent.

  “Oops, sorry!” said the mayor. He tapped the microphone. An ASL interpreter stood to the left of the mayor, signing the mayor’s comments as he spoke.

  “. . . Hello. Hello. Good morning!” said the mayor. “Thank you for sharing your views on the Blue River Creek Zoo.”

  The crowd chanted again. The mayor raised his hand and they quieted down.

  “The city council and I are glad to see so many citizens involved! We will decide using science and what’s best for the community.” He seemed to look directly at the Questioneers when he said it. Maybe the message had gotten through!

  Aaron looked at Ada.

  “Science!” she whispered.

  Aaron smiled. The mayor continued.

  “We want to hear from citizens,” he said. “We are holding an emergency meeting in a few minutes. Clerk Clara Clark has a sign-up list. Speakers on the list will get a numbered ticket and will have three minutes to explain their position.

  “We will announce our decision tomorrow afternoon at the Dahlia Festival,” he said, “since most of the town will be there anyway!”

  The Dahlia Festival was a big deal in Blue River Creek. The gardening club made sure the dahlia beds in Citizens’ Park were perfect. The mayor and half of the city council members were in the club. They were keen gardeners and spent their lunch breaks tending the gardens. The Dahlia Festival was a chance for them to show off the flowers and for everyone to celebrate Citizens’ Park. Also, there was free ice cream, so everyone in town showed up.

  “Thank you!” the mayor said, waving to the crowd.

  And with that, he led the city council back through the big glass doors and was gone.

  CHAPTER

  14

  Aaron’s siblings headed home, but the Questioneers stood together on the landing.

  “A list!?!” cried Ada. “How do we find Clerk Clark?”

  “I don’t see her anywhere,” said Rosie.

  “Maybe Sofi—” said Aaron.

  He looked around. Sofia was gone.

  “There she is!” cried Iggy, pointing at a line forming by the glass doors.

  They ran to Sofia.

  “Look what I got!” she said, waving three tickets. “Who wants to speak?”

  “Not me,” said Iggy. “Unless it’s about Gothic architecture!”

  “Ada knows the science best and Rosie knows the zoo best,” said Aaron. “And you know the city council best, Sofia.”

  “But you—” Sofia began.

  Suddenly, the doors swung open and the crowd pushed into City Hall, sweeping the Questioneers along with them.

  CHAPTER

  15

  Aaron and Iggy sat near the back of the room. Ada, Rosie, and Sofia lined up with the other number holders. Clerk Clara Clark called the meeting to order. The ASL interpreter stood next to her.

  The first speaker was Thomas Frost.

  “I am the president of PSSST!, which stands for Parents Stopping Sneaky Snakes Today,” he said. “PSSST! wants to stop flying snakes from attacking our children! It’s all in our pamphlet!”

  He waved a glossy pamphlet like Aaron had found. Several people cheered.

  “Order!” said Clerk Clark.

  The crowd quieted and Mr. Frost continued. “I’m just asking a question here,” he said, “but what if flying snakes swallowed all our children? Then we’d have a lot of fat snakes but no kids. That would be bad.”

  The crowd booed.

  “Order!” cried the clerk.

  The crowd hushed.

  Next was a woman in a “BOO to the ZOO” T-shirt.

  “We should not have wild animals at the zoo,” she said. “They’re dangerous and scary. And one time, a monkey made faces at me. That was rude. And Zookeeper Fred is not good at his job.”

  Next, it was Rosie’s turn. The woman’s words about her Uncle Fred had stung. Rosie’s cheeks were bright red, and she felt hot. She instantly forgot everything she had planned to say. She looked around nervously.

  “Um . . .” she said. “. . . I’m Rosie . . .”

  Rosie looked at her friends, who smiled back. She stood a little taller.

  “. . . I’m Rosie Revere,” she said again, “and Zookeeper Fred is my uncle.

  “He’s a great uncle,” she said. “And he’s a great zookeeper. And he didn’t mean for Vern to get outside.

  “I’m an engineer,” she continued. “It takes lots of tries to build an invention, because things go wrong. That’s just the process. Things go wrong everywhere. Even the zoo. Well . . . anyway . . . Uncle Fred fixed the problem, so Vern won’t get outside again and—”

  The next speaker approached the mic. Rosie’s time was up, and she hadn’t told them how important snakes were.

  She sighed.

  “Thank you,” she said quietly.

  She walked to the back of the room and plopped onto the bench next to Aaron.

  “It’s okay,” he whispered.

  “I don’t think so,” said Rosie.

  Next, a man complained about a pothole on Baker Street. Then, it was Ada’s turn. She held up Uncle Fred’s book. She had lots to say but very little time. So she spoke very quickly.

  “I’m Ada Twist!” she said. “I’m a scientist, and I love snakes. Here’s a book you should read!”

  She took a deep breath and continued.

  “Snakes have between 180 and 400 bones in their spines so they can wiggle like this,” she said.

  Ada wiggled like a snake.

  “I only have thirty bones in my spine,” she added. “But I can wiggle, too. Snakes are reptiles. They swallow their food whole. They can’t even chew. So, a snake isn’t going to eat you unless it can swallow you.”

  She took another deep breath and zoomed on.

  “A giant python in a swamp could eat you,” she said. “Some of them are twenty feet long and fat as a telephone pole! They can eat a whole deer or a great big alligator! Can you imagine that? I can!”

  The audience gasped.

  “Don’t worry,” said Ada. “The zoo isn’t a swamp, and Vern is tiny. Now you know about snakes. Thank you!”

  She waved goodbye and headed for the seats.

  “Oh!” she cried. “I almost forgot. Snakes can’t fly!”

  With that, Ada plopped onto the bench by Rosie and took a deep breath.

  “Phew!” she said. “Problem solved!”

  CHAPTER

  16

  The problem wasn’t solved.

  The next two speakers talked about flying snakes terrorizing the zoo and taking over the city. Ada frowned.

  “I told them snakes can’t fly,” she whispered. “Didn’t they listen?”

  Aaron pointed to a page of the PSSST! pamphlet.

  “They just repeated this,” he said.

  Sofia stepped up to the mic and adjusted her barrettes. She seemed cool as a cucumber. She glanced at some notes she had written. Then she began.

  “Thank you for your hard work on the city council,” she said calmly.

  “I love Blue River Creek,” she said. “I love our public library, our public park, our public school, and our public zoo. Citizens’ taxes pay for them. They belong to ALL our citizens. Not just me. Not just you. Not just the members of PSSST! All of us. That’s what public means.”

  She continued. “If I built a private zoo,” she said. “I would only have turtles, because I love them best. My zoo would have great architecture, so Iggy might like it, too.

  “However,” she said, “my zoo would not be good for Rosie, who loves birds. Or Aaron, who loves big cats. It would be very bad for Ada! She’s a scientist and needs to study ALL animals. Including snakes.

  “A private, turtle-only zoo would be fine if I paid for it with my own money.” Sofia said. “But the Blue River Creek Zoo is a public zoo. It’s OUR zoo.

  “It’s paid for by ALL of us,” she said. “And it should serve ALL of us. Thank you.”

  The Questioneers cheered. A few people around the audience applauded.

  “Order,” said Clerk Clark.

  Sofia smiled shyly and walked to the back of the room. She squeezed onto the bench next to Ada, who noticed that although Sofia seemed very brave, her hand trembled. Ada squeezed her friend’s hand and gave her a big hug.

  “You were amazing,” Ada whispered.

  After that, Sofia’s hand didn’t tremble at all.

  CHAPTER

  17

  The meeting continued. Some speakers were for snakes. Some were against. Someone asked for a cracker kiosk next to the cheese kiosk in the park. Everyone cheered for that. Even the clerk.

  At last, the line dwindled.

  The woman from the zoo stepped up to the mic. She clutched her kids’ hands tightly.

  “Where’s the funny green snake?” asked one triplet. “We like him!”

  “We’re snakes, too,” said another triplet.

  “Hissssssss!!!!!!” they said together.

  Their snake hats wobbled and bobbled. The snakes’ googly eyes swirled around and around. Everyone laughed.

  “Order!” said the clerk, trying to keep a straight face.

  “My name is Sarah Hartman,” said the woman. “I am very upset. We went to the zoo and a snake landed on my son’s head. It was very scary.”

  “I liked it,” said the triplet.

  “I did not,” said Ms. Hartman. “I love the zoo. I’m glad that Zookeeper Fred apologized. But it’s not too much to ask for the zoo to be safe for everyone. Thank you.”

  The last speaker approached the mic. It was Sofia’s grandfather.

  “Two things can be true at the same time,” said Abuelo. “Ms. Hartman and Sofia are both right. The zoo should be safe, and it should serve all the people.

  “When scary things happen, we react from fear,” he said. “But if we get rid of things—like the snakes—because we don’t understand them, we lose something important. We lose the chance to learn what they can teach us. Snakes are very different from us. They have their own beauty and deserve to exist and be appreciated as they are. And they can also help us.”

  Abuelo looked at the Questioneers seated together. When he turned back to the microphone, his voice was somber. He gently touched his hand to his heart.

  “I am old,” he said, “but my Sofia and her friends are young. The future is a beautiful and scary place full of adventures and challenges. We don’t know what problems our kids will face in the future or what tools they will need.